Trust is Overrated
by Pineapple Pen
Summary: Nobody in the Vongola Family really trusts Mukuro, but between drinking green tea and killing off drug ring leaders, Hibari realizes that the illusionist isn't as herbivorous as he had always thought. ON HIATUS!
1. Ten Years, Five Months

**Instead of writing up a birthday fic for Hibari, like I originally planned, I've decided to do a multi-chaptered fic. It'll have a _plot line_ and everything unlike my usual oneshots! Isn't that awesome!! The rating might go up half way through - I haven't exactly decided what's going to happen...**

**Anyway, I don't own Hitman Reborn, no matter how much I ask God.**

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**Ten Years, Five Months**

It was two and a half weeks after the event when Hibari had found out. He was not pleased. In fact, as soon as Kusakabe mentioned it, he had marched down to Sawada Tsunayoshi's room, barged in and head butted the Vongola Tenth unconscious. That was only because he had worked himself up into such a stress that he had forgotten to bring his tonfa with him. To be fair, Tsuna _did _have a very good reason for not telling his Cloud Guardian what was going on. And that reason could be explained with two simple words:

Rokudo Mukuro.

It was only natural that nobody wanted to tell Hibari that Mukuro was to be released.

Well, that was technically a lie. Mukuro himself was quite happy enough to tell him (if only to rub it in his face), but was somehow convinced not too by the rest of the Family. Perhaps it was because Chrome had asked him, or maybe he just decided it would be more fun to surprise the former prefect and see his expression. The latter was much more believable. So, the whole Vongola Family managed to have Mukuro released without Hibari Kyoya finding out. Tsuna still could not understand how on Earth they managed to pull _that _off without getting killed.

So, two and a half weeks later, Kusakabe finally accidentally let it slip that Mukuro was still resting off the after affects of his release. Hibari had paused, smashed his cup, broke Kusakabe's arm and stormed off to see Tsuna.

Later that day, Gokudera would find Tsuna crumpled up on the floor, bleeding from the nose and his face dangerously close to a pen that was lodged in the table.

After knocking the Tenth unconscious, Hibari marched off to find Mukuro so he could murder the bastard. It had been approximately ten years, five months, seven days and four hours since their first meeting, and Hibari still held a strong grudge against Mukuro. The idiot had been the first ever person to defeat him, and even had the nerve to rub it in his face. Such a feat did not deserve to go unpunished.

He strode purposefully down the Vongola corridors, the murderous aura radiating off of him almost visibly as he clenched his fists in anger.

His hands almost went through the door as he wrenched it open to storm into the medical room.

What he saw somewhat surprised him. Mukuro was there alright, as he had been told, but he wasn't himself. Well, this time he technically was, but there was something incredibly wrong about the scene before him. Mukuro was lying in the bed, his skin a sickly pale and his figure skinnier than usual with a drip attached to his arm and other machines stuck to him to keep him alive. His usual, silky smooth pineapple headed hair was matted and tangled and ridiculously long, sprawled around his head like a spider web. His eyes were closed and looked dark - panda-eyed one could call it. The most startling thing about the illusionist, Hibari had noted, was that he was not smiling.

Hibari approached.

'Hibari-san?' Chrome muttered sleepily. She, when Hibari had walked in, was asleep by Mukuro's side, her head resting on his arm uncomfortably. She looked up at the man, her one eye projecting little fear.

'This is not Mukuro,' Hibari remarked, staring at the motionless stranger that was lying in the bed.

Chrome looked away, as if she was almost to shy to speak. 'It is,' she said quietly, sadly. 'They say he won't be able to move his limbs properly for about two years. He has to go through intense physiotherapy just to move even one leg.' The young woman clutched at her master's hand, tears pricking at her eye. 'He won't even be able to talk right until he has retrained himself.'

Hibari's gaze bore into Mukuro's pale form as he listened to Chrome's tearful words. This was not right; this was not Mukuro. The man that was lying in front of him was not the annoyingly infuriating rival he had wanted to kill for ten years. Mukuro was now free, so why was he spending precious time lying down sleeping? Hibari glared at the form, every fiber in his being screaming at him to give the man a tonfa in the face. He ignored the feeling and turned to Chrome, who was crying silently at the sight of her vulnerable-looking master.

'Two years?' he asked. Chrome nodded. 'Do you really expect that bastard to stay lying in a bed for another two years?'

The young woman looked up, hopeful realization dawning in her eyes as she gazed fondly at Mukuro. 'You're right, Hibari-san,' she whispered quietly, opting to take his words as a comfort. She turned her eye towards him, a soft, almost unnoticeable smile on her face. 'Mukuro-sama will be fine.' Her expression turned to one of confusion. 'Oh, are you here to see him, Hibari-san?'

He was, but that was not the point at the moment. 'Hn. This herbivore won't interest me until he's able to fight,' he snapped, glaring at Mukuro's body. He spun around, not wanting to fight Mukuro when he was in that state, and left, leaving Chrome to sit there on her own. Well, it was not like he was going to sit there in the first place.

He didn't understand. If the information he had beaten out of Kusakabe was correct, then Mukuro had been released two and a half weeks ago. Why was the idiot _still_ resting in a bed, unable to move his limbs? Sure he had spent ten years locked up in a glass tube, completely motionless with no way to contact the outside world unless he used up the little power he had remaining to possess someone, but that gave him no excuse to be lounging around and doing physiotherapy with some herbivorous doctor. It was just not right.

Hibari narrowed his eyes.

Mukuro was not the type of person to give up that easily, so maybe he was plotting something. That certainly made more sense than him lying in a bed for days on end. He did not believe that Mukuro would pass up a chance to be free and wrecking havoc with his annoying but admittedly brilliant mind. The Cloud Guardian stormed away back to Tsuna's office, wanting to read Mukuro's file.

And that's just what he did.

Tsuna was no longer there (as he was probably being obsessed over by an overly protective Storm Guardian) so Hibari was free to do as he wished. He yanked open a filing cabinet, unaware that it was originally locked, and began riffling through the files there, searching for Rokudo among the many names that began with R.

Eventually, he found it. It was the smallest file in there.

With the file under his arm and a prominent glare on his face, he marched out of the room, wanting to get out of the damned Vongola base. It was bad enough that he was even a little bit associated with them, he didn't want to be loitering around just to read a file that only had about three pages in it.

Well, his estimate was not far off, Hibari reasoned as he returned to his room. There were in fact two pages in the file and neither of them were about Mukuro's past. Hibari was not interested in that though. He just wanted to know why and how the hell the Vongola Family decided to free him. He had assumed that Sawada Tsunayoshi did not forgive Mukuro for his crimes, but he obviously thought wrong. Sitting down on one of his mats, he plucked up the first sheet.

There was some ramblings about the time the Vongola first came into contact with him (and, to which Hibari noted with immense satisfaction, how Tsuna had defeated him) and some notes on his herbivorous gang. Then, when Hibari peered at the second page, there about were details about his release. This is what the Cloud Guardian was looking for. His eyes narrowed once again as he scrutinized the page. Apparently the Kokuyo, including Chrome surprisingly, threatened to start a major riot if they did not release Mukuro. Now, usually Tsuna would have refused (he may have pitied and forgiven Mukuro, but he could not forget what the man had done to him) but then Chrome - most likely encouraged by the rest of the Kokuyo Gang - had refused to do any missions until the Vongola complied with them. Naturally, Tsuna needed a Mist Guardian and did not know what else he could do, since he could definitely _not_ ask Hibari to be trained in using illusions. He had the mist attribute, yes, but he certainly would never use them. So, in the end Tsuna had made some sort of deal with the Vendicians.

To Hibari's surprise, it had taken two whole years before Vendice even acknowledged Tsuna and the Vongola, despite how high up they are in the Mafia, another two years to sort out all of the details of Mukuro's release, including contracts, probation and things like that and another year before Mukuro was finally freed.

The whole Kokuyo on strike thing had happened approximately five years ago, which rather shocked Hibari. He had thought that the decision to release the brain leech was recent. That meant that it had been hidden from him for five years. And _that_ meant that Hibari was not happy. Somebody was going to pay for keeping him in the dark, somebody was _really_ going to pay.

He threw the thin file aside and poured himself some green tea, absently wondering where the hell Kusakabe had gotten to, momentarily forgetting that he had broken his arm and he was probably getting it treated by the Sun Guardian.

He didn't particularly care about Mukuro being released, it was just that he couldn't stand seeing the bastard in the flesh, considering the last time he did he got his ass handed to him for the first time in his life. He could_ never_ forget that moment, which just made him want to kill Mukuro even more. Unfortunately, his revenge would have to wait. He wanted his win against the illusionist to be as satisfying as possible, but with Mukuro lying in a bed and attached to various machines to keep him alive Hibari realized that winning against him would be just stupid. He would just have to wait until Mukuro was back to his usual, annoying, healthy self before he could challenge him.

Just the thought of battling Mukuro again made Hibari smirk. He would really show that herbivore who exactly was the stronger of the two, and by doing that he would regain the dignity he lost when he was humiliated at the young age of sixteen. He took a sip of his tea and closed his eyes contently, not noticing that someone had just opened the door and entered.

'Oh Kyoya,' an infuriatingly familiar voice sighed, 'how lovely of you to visit me today!'

Hibari looked up and came face to face with the man he hated most in the world.

'I'm sure you've missed me, hm?'

Rokudo Mukuro.

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**And so begins my first 6918 multi-chaptered fic. I'll try to update twice a week but I'm not promising anything.**

**Anyway, until I next update please review!**


	2. Holding Back

**Wow, I actually remembered to update! That's surprising! Anyway, here's the next chapter~**

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**Holding Back**

It was rather surprising to see Mukuro sat in front of him. Well, usually he would be more angry than shocked, but it was actually Mukuro and not some herbivorous illusion. He could tell that it _was_ the Mist Guardian because why would Mukuro cast an illusion of himself wearing nothing but a backless hospital gown?

The man looked just as sickly as he did when Hibari saw him earlier, but this time his face had a certain glow to it. He smiled happily and poured himself a cup of green tea, ignoring Hibari's shocked face.

'You're not supposed to be able to move,' Hibari finally managed to splutter. Undignified and a little bit out of character, but he was genuinely surprised about the real life Mukuro sitting there in front of him, sipping tea so casually.

'Hm? Oh, I was able to move again after the third day of my release,' Mukuro said nonchalantly. His voice was hoarse and sounded like his throat had been through a belt sander, but still he smiled. He fumbled a little with his hospital gown and brought the cup to his lips, his mismatched eyes twinkling unnaturally in the dim light of Hibari's room as he drunk the tea greedily, almost as if he was dehydrated. Well, it was too be expected, especially since his throat was probably so rough.

Hibari slammed his cup down on the table. 'So why have you been lying around doing nothing?'

Mukuro laughed. 'I said I could move, not that I could move _well._ Besides, anything to put the inevitable lecture about my release from Sawada Tsunayoshi on hold,' he chuckled. 'Also, my physiotherapy starts tomorrow so I decided to come out of my 'sleep'. I don't think I want to go through learning how to walk again, when as you can see I can do it quite well.'

His hands looked abnormally skinny as they tapped on the table, a sure sign of malnourishment from his long stay in Vendicare. However, his expression on his face said that he didn't care. Hibari regarded his pale form with a dangerous glare.

'Your hair looks ridiculous,' he said bluntly.

Mukuro tugged at his long matted hair unselfconsciously. 'I don't know, Kyoya,' he said. 'When I wash it I think it will look rather nice. I've never had long hair before. In this life anyway.' Hibari scoffed and took another sip of his tea. Usually, if everything was normal, he would jump up and bite Mukuro to death there and then but he was not interested in the herbivore when he was not at his full strength. He planned to make Mukuro's defeat absolutely epic, but that would not work if the illusionist was half-starved and weak. So, he would wait and hold back his urge to kill the man who sat in front of him. And if that meant that he had to tolerate Mukuro's presence, he would.

To an extent.

'Why are you here, brain leech,' he snapped. 'I'll bite you to death.'

'Well, I was surprised when you came to visit me before,' he sighed, pouring himself more tea. 'So after Chrome fell asleep once again I left to find you to return the favor. I must say that I'm rather surprised that you stopped off at Sawada Tsunayoshi's office. Tell me, was my file interesting? I haven't gotten around to reading it yet.' He gestured casually over to discarded file that was strewn carelessly in the corner of the room.

'I was checking the details of your release,' Hibari snapped, not entirely sure why he was defending his intentions.

'Ah yes,' Mukuro hummed. 'I was skeptical of Sawada Tsunayoshi's method to free me, after all it _did_ take five years. I would have much preferred it if they just destroyed Vendice, that would have been so much more fun and a lot less time consuming.'

Hibari's eyes narrowed and his hands gripped tightly around his cup. 'You knew all along?'

'I did,' he said. 'I've come to the understanding that you did not. I think you are aware why, aren't you?' Hibari nodded with a glare and set down his cup. He understood perfectly well why nobody chose to tell him about the release, but that did not mean that he had to be happy about it. He scowled at the casual pineapple head who sat in front of him as comfortably as one would be in their own home. The strangest thing about it was that Hibari had not yet kicked him out. Why? He didn't know. Perhaps it was because at the moment Mukuro was definitely not considered a threat. But, then again, Hibari usually would bite to death _anyone_, and that included those who were not threats.

Hibari simply put it down to the fact that he knew Mukuro could be much stronger than he was at that moment and left it at that.

Mukuro closed his eyes and sighed, notably happy to be in the company of another human being instead of an illusionary one, even if that human being was Hibari Kyoya. Then again, Mukuro never really minded Hibari. He only beat the former prefect that one time because it was in his best interest. One of them had to win, and Mukuro was not going to loose. Unfortunately, that led to his defeat by Tsuna. Unlike Hibari, Mukuro was willing to forgive the young boss for beating him, but that did not mean that he no longer wanted to possess his body and take over the world.

'I take it that as soon as you are healthy you will be leaving?' Hibari said blandly. You could almost hear the hope in his voice. Almost.

'Oya, will you miss me?' Mukuro chuckled. 'But yes, I plan to take my dear Chrome and my subordinates to Italy with me. If Sawada Tsunayoshi permits it.'

'Good,' Hibari muttered. He didn't care what Mukuro did. As long as the bastard fought him before he left then he would be happy. Well, as happy as Hibari Kyoya actually gets. Mukuro chuckled eerily, the dryness of his voice making it sound ragged and forced.

'Do you want to get rid of me so soon, Kyoya?' he chimed. Hibari was about to reply, but the door sliding open interrupted him. He looked up in controlled surprise to see Chrome standing there, her one eye red with tears. Mukuro appeared to be indifferent.

'Mukuro-sama has gone missing,' Chrome whispered, only just loud enough for both men to hear her. She approached Hibari sadly, not noticing that her master was sat across from him. Well, that's what you get when half of your vision is covered by an eye patch. 'He shouldn't be able to move,' she continued, tears strolling down her face. 'What if someone has taken him? What if he has been kidnapped while I was sleeping?'

Hibari stared at her incredulously before turning to look at Mukuro, who seemed to be fine with the whole situation. The illusionist laughed out loud, catching Chrome's attention. She gasped and walk-ran over to him, eagerly but carefully wrapping her arms around him and pulling him into a hug. She cried into his shoulder, whatever words she was saying muffled by her tears.

'Now, now, Chrome,' he said softly, 'what's wrong?'

She looked up tearfully. 'Mukuro-sama, I thought you were gone,' she cried, trying to stop the tears that persistently ran down her face. 'You had only just come back from prison and I thought that you were taken away from right under my nose!' She sniffed and tried to regain her shy composure as she clung to her master almost desperately.

'Kufufu. Don't worry, my cute little Chrome,' Mukuro said, stroking her hair as an old brother would do to comfort a little sister. 'I can assure you that I haven't been taken away by anyone. I've been here the whole time.' Chrome blushed and lowered her head, ashamed at herself for acting so emotional in front of the very man she would give her life for. The thought that she could have just found Mukuro with their link never occurred to her until that moment, making her feel even more like an idiot.

'Forgive me, Mukuro-sama,' she said in a quiet voice, averting her gaze from him. 'I think I overreacted a little bit.' Her face was red with tears that were quickly wiped away by Mukuro.

He smiled at her fondly. 'It's understandable, after all, I _am_ supposed to be confined to a bed and unable to move. It's perfectly natural that you would be worried.' Chrome smiled slightly but the blush refused to leave her cheeks. Oh, how she hated that part of her genetics. She wished she have never inherited the ability to blush under any and all circumstances. However, the fact that she had cried so humiliatingly in front of Mukuro gave her an excuse.

She turned to Hibari, still avoiding eye contact. 'I'm sorry for disturbing you, Hibari-san,' she said while trying to stay as close to Mukuro as possible, if only to make sure he was real. Hibari scoffed and turned back to his tea, the initial surprise of Chrome shuffling into his room in tears worn off. All he wanted now was the two pineapple heads to leave him in some much needed peace. He voiced his thoughts.

Chrome blushed again and nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly. She turned to Mukuro expectantly, who was finishing his drink and smiling.

'You want me to go back and rest, my dear?' Mukuro said to the young woman, as if he was reading her mind. Chrome nodded, vaguely wondering whether this could be counted as bossing him around, because that was definitely the _last_ thing she wanted to do. To her relief, Mukuro simply laughed. 'I suppose I should then, I wouldn't want to worry you anymore than I already have.'

Chrome breathed out happily and bent down to help Mukuro up, only to be surprised when he did it himself effortlessly. 'Mukuro-sama!' she gasped.

'Hm? Oh, yes I can move, Chrome,' he said offhandedly. 'Fairly well actually.'

Chrome's blush intensified tenfold and she looked away while Hibari just rolled his eyes. 'It's not that, uh…'

'You've got your ass on display, herbivore,' Hibari snapped bluntly. Mukuro blinked and turned his head so he could see, as if he had only just realized that he was still wearing the hospital gown. If he felt uncomfortable at that moment, he didn't show it.

'I was not aware that I was naked underneath this,' he laughed, completely unashamed. He shrugged and smiled at Hibari. 'Well, Kyoya, I will see you when I see you. Goodbye~'

He turned around and carefully walked away, giving Hibari a great view of his ass (not Hibari would ever admit that).

'Mukuro-sama!' Chrome called, embarrassed for him. She scampered away from Hibari after muttering a quick apology, running after Mukuro who was laughing somewhat insanely.

'I wonder who changed me in the first place,' Hibari heard Mukuro say as he left, leaving the Cloud Guardian in much appreciated silence. He glared at the door for a while before refilling his cup distractedly.

OK, so Mukuro was a lot stronger than he was supposed to be, but that meant nothing. If Hibari had spent ten years without moving then he would be still be able to lift a leg or two after the third day, so it meant nothing to him that Mukuro had managed it. Either way, it simply meant that Mukuro would be battle-ready sooner rather than later. Hibari let a faint smirk flicker on his features. He would show that pineapple head who exactly was the strongest around there. He would _maul_ the man to death, never mind bite! Hibari had been waiting for this opportunity for just over ten years, and he'd be damned if he didn't take it. So, as soon as Mukuro was in his usual state then Hibari would take that chance to rip the fool's head off.

And maybe then he would consider dropping his grudge.

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**What did you think? Everyone somewhat in character? I think they are, I guess - not too sure about Chrome though, but that's how I think she'd react if she suddenly found that Mukuro was missing.**

**Next chapter should be posted on Wednesday - it really depends on how fast I write it up. **


	3. Green Tea and Mission Meetings

**I came home from collage today and found that my stupid little brother had been messing around on my computer and ended up deleting three chapters of this fic that I had written in advance. I almost _cried_! Well, not really, but yeah, I was pretty pissed off. **

**Anyway, I decided to quickly write up what I remember of this chapter, so I'm sorry if it's pretty rushed!**

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Green Tea and Mission Meetings**

It had been eighteen days since Mukuro decided to start walking about again and, to his credit, Hibari had not attacked him once. Sure he _wanted _to, but the damn illusionist was still too weak. Tsuna and Chrome were happy about Mukuro's progress, but he still had quite a long way to go. Muscle had begun to form again and his face was a little more filled out, but he still looked a little sickly and pale. He sure as hell didn't act like it though. His usual demeanor of the creepily happy illusionist was still there and the way he strutted about as if he owned the place didn't suggest that he had been locked up for just over ten years. Even so, he was forbidden to walk around too much, as Tsuna feared that it would be too much for him. When any other Guardian saw him walking about they were ordered to take him somewhere to rest. Mukuro didn't approve of that, but he complied with Tsuna's wishes.

Instead of striding around like he was not supposed to, he ended up visiting Hibari on a daily bases. It was surprisingly not that bad. At first, Hibari had snapped at him and threatened to choke him with his own hair, but then gave up when he realized that Mukuro would just not leave him. He soon grew accustomed to the pineapple head invading his space, and often expected his company as he sat down with his usual cup of green tea.

It was not a surprise when Mukuro walked into the room and sat down, making himself completely at home in Hibari's room as he poured some tea in the cup that was already placed there.

'Good morning, Kyoya~' he chimed, smiling brightly at his grumpy companion.

Hibari glared. 'Why are you here?'

'You ask me that everyday,' Mukuro remarked, leaning backwards slightly, 'but you have yet to kick me out. I wonder why.'

'Because, idiot, if I kick you out you'll just come straight back in,' Hibari snapped, picking up his own cup. 'It's a waste of energy trying to get rid of you.'

'Ah, you know me well,' he chuckled, fumbling around with the purple yukata he was wearing. He was allowed to wear normal clothes, but with all of the medical care he still had to go through he decided that the yukata was more convenient. It was so much easier to slip on and off when getting a checkup. That and it was very comfortable to wear around the base.

Hibari grunted a reply too incoherent to hear and glared into his cup, absently wondering why Mukuro chose _him_ to bother instead of anyone else. He didn't particularly mind, it's just that he preferred to be alone. Admittedly, however, Mukuro's presence was tolerable, more so than Hibari originally thought. All the pineapple tended to do was walk in, help himself to tea and talk about whatever interested them both for that day. Still, that gave Mukuro no excuse to bother Hibari when he had Chrome or the other Guardian's to pester.

Kusakabe stood in the corner of the room, his watchful, suspicious gaze boring into Mukuro. Like most of the Vongola, he didn't trust the illusionist. It seemed that he was under the impression that Mukuro would jump on Hibari and try and beat the hell out of him whenever he got the chance. He was wrong, mind you, but the option was always there for Mukuro to take. And should the illusionist actually ever try something, Kusakabe would be there to stop him. Well, _try_ to stop him. He had doubts about his own strength when it came to people who could hold their own against Hibari Kyoya.

'Don't you have a meeting with Sawada?' Hibari spoke, raising a brow at Mukuro. The Mist Guardian nodded with a smirk and simply made himself more comfortable on the mat, taking a short sip from his tea.

'I do,' he confirmed shortly, leaning his elbows on the table. 'But Sawada Tsunayoshi tends to lecture on when it is me he is talking too. Someone should really tell him that I am actually not as insane as he believes me to be.'

One again Hibari raised a brow. 'You _are_ insane.'

'Not entirely,' Mukuro defended, letting out a low chuckle.

Hibari gave him a blank stare. 'You tried to talk over the world.'

'Every villain tries too at some point,' he shrugged. 'I was only doing it for revenge.' Hibari rolled his eyes, but didn't make a point of wanting to continue with the discussion. He didn't need to know Mukuro's reasons for trying to take over the Mafia before taking over the world. The whole situation brought back memories that Hibari would rather forget. He discretely shook the thoughts out of his head as his little bird came fluttering into the room. It was a pleasant surprise, as Hibird hadn't come back from wherever he went in a while. In fact, Hibari had begun to think that the little bundle of feathers had finally died. After all, over ten years was a long time for a bird to live.

'Hibari, Hibari,' Hibird chirped repetitively, flapping his little wings to get to his master. He stopped, however, and stared at Mukuro, as if he recognized him from somewhere.

'Ah, I didn't think you would keep the little bird,' Mukuro said, petting Hibird on the head as he perched on the table. Hibari watched as the illusionist fondly stroked the bird, who looked almost happy in Mukuro's company - like he felt familiar with the Mist Guardian.

'He has a name,' Hibari muttered, looking down at his tea.

'Hibird, was it?' Mukuro said, more to the bird than to Hibari. 'This one was always the outcast of all of the birds, he never really fitted in with the whole perverted evil thing that Birds had going on, which is most likely the reason he took a liking to you. He was always my favorite.' Hibird twittered and nuzzled his head into Mukuro's hand, causing the illusionist's smirk to become softer.

Hibari stared at Mukuro, who had a thoughtful expression on his face as he petted the bird. 'I never saw you as the type to like birds,' he said uninterestedly.

Mukuro quirked a brow. 'And what about you? You stole one and kept him as a pet.'

'I didn't steal him,' Hibari snapped. 'He followed me because he wanted too.'

Mukuro smiled and seized his stroking in favor of picking up his cup and taking another sip. Hibird chirped again, and hopped over to Hibari, choosing to settle down on the Cloud Guardian's shoulder.

'You are aware that if you don't go to this meeting with Sawada they'll send someone for you?' Hibari said, changing the subject. 'And if they do I'll just bite them to death.'

Mukuro seemed unaffected at the threat that was not directed at him. 'I would gladly allow you to bite to death anyone who comes. Anyone but my dear Chrome.'

'I'll bite _you_ to death then,' Hibari glared.

'Oya~ do you really want to get rid of me that much, Kyoya?' Mukuro asked, holding a hand over his heart in mock hurt. He smirked again. 'Or is it that you don't want me to get into trouble?'

'Hn.' Mukuro took that answer as a 'shut the hell up you stupid herbivore' and chuckled before draining the last of his tea.

'Since you insist I'll get going,' he said, standing up slowly. 'I suppose I can find some way to entertain myself during the meeting.' Hibari grunted and shooed Mukuro away with a swat of his hand, accidentally scaring Hibird off of his shoulder.

Mukuro chuckled and opened the door, only to come face to face with the right hand man of Tsuna. Well, it was more like face to chin, as Mukuro towered over Gokudera quite a bit.

'Oya?' Mukuro said as he looked down at the silver-haired bomber.

Gokudera glared. 'The Tenth want's to see you,' he snapped, subconsciously straightening his posture in a failed attempt at matching Mukuro's height. His angry gaze turned to Hibari. 'You too.'

Hibari glared up at the bomber from his seated position. 'Why?'

'Well, go and you might find out, bastard,' Gokudera exclaimed. Hibari's brow twitched, but if he wanted to do something violent to Gokudera, he didn't show it. Well, he thought he didn't show it. Mukuro noticed the anger radiating off of him for simply being in Gokudera's presence, so decided to link his arm through Hibari's with a chuckle.

'Yes, yes, we'll leave right now,' he chimed, giving the suspicious Storm Guardian a curt wave. Hibari's glare snapped back to the front as he yanked his arm away from Mukuro's - completely unhappy to be called in for a meeting that he wasn't even supposed to go to. Tsuna better have had a good reason for dragging him _all _the way out to the Vongola base, which really wasn't actually that far. Still, Hibari didn't enjoy associating with the Vongola, even if it was right next door.

'I blame you for this,' he muttered, glaring at Mukuro. The illusionist smiled.

'You blame me for everything,' he chuckled, nudging the former prefect in the arm. Hibari swatted him away as he followed the taller man, a some sort of a pout creasing along his features. 'Next you'll begin to blame me for the fact that you forgot to bring shoes.'

Hibari looked down and noticed that he indeed forgot to put on some footwear. He grunted and crossed his arms over his chest - his face heating up slightly at his mistake. Mukuro chuckled fondly and patted Hibari on the head, only to be hit in the ribs. They continued to walk in this fashion - Mukuro doing something that would make Hibari hit him, and Hibari reacting violently. They fought childishly before they finally reached Tsuna's office.

'Ah, Mukuro, Hibari-san, please take a seat,' Tsuna said kindly, gesturing to the seats that were placed in front of his desk. Mukuro complied happily and plopped himself down while Hibari opted to stand.

'Is there any particular reason you called both of us, Sawada Tsunayoshi?' Mukuro asked, lounging comfortably in the chair as if it was his own. Mukuro seemed to have the talent of treating everywhere he was like his own home.

'Yes, there is,' Tsuna said with a somewhat forced smile. 'There's an assignment that requires yours certain…skills, Mukuro. It's something that Chrome just can't do.' Mukuro nodded in understanding while Hibari just narrowed his eyes.

'And why am I here?' he asked sharply. 'Choose your words wisely, Sawada.'

Tsuna paled slightly and quickly ran through his options. Hibari would take the news two ways. He would either snap and smash Tsuna's head against the wall, or he would snap and destroy half of the base. Neither option sounded very pleasant. He sent a quick glance to Mukuro, absently wondering if the illusionist would save him if Hibari went on a rampage. As if he knew what the Tenth was thinking, Mukuro smirked. No, he definitely would not save him.

Swallowing his childish fear of Hibari, Tsuna continued. 'I'm afraid to say this, but not everyone trusts Mukuro, including me,' he said, choosing his words wisely like he was advised. 'Since it _has_ to be Mukuro on this assignment, I need to send someone to keep him line during it.'

'Contrary to your beliefs, Sawada Tsunayoshi, I can be a respectable person and I _do_ know how to act on assignments,' Mukuro interrupted.

Tsuna turned to Mukuro. 'It's not that, it's just that I don't want you doing something potentially…insane.' He didn't expect Mukuro to laugh at his statement, so felt rather uncomfortable when he did. He turned back to Hibari. 'So, Hibari-san, we would like you to be the one to take care of Mukuro.'

In a flash Tsuna's head was smashed against the table. Well, it was a little better than the other two scenarios that he could think off.

'Is he a child?' Hibari snapped. 'I think he can take care of himself.'

The Tenth flailed under Hibari's fist, feeling pretty pathetic at that moment. 'I don't mean it like that, Hibari-san,' he stressed. 'I just want you to keep him in line and make sure he doesn't do anything that he'll regret.'

Mukuro raised his hand at this. 'I don't regret,' he stated quite truthfully.

'Make sure he doesn't do anything the Vongola regrets then,' he said, looking pointedly at the illusionist. Mukuro nodded with a smile on his face.

'Why should _I_ do it?' Hibari asked, releasing Tsuna from his grip.

'Because you're the only Guardian that can come anywhere close to beating him,' Tsuna said, rubbing his head. It _was_ true, after all. All the other Guardians were no match against the illusionist, but at least Hibari could hold his own.

'What about you?'

'I can't do it, I'm busy.' Mukuro sighed, seeing that the meeting was going nowhere, and stood up to take his leave, mentioning something about slipping the mission brief in Hibari's room as he slipped through the door. Neither Tsuna nor Hibari noticed his disappearance as they continued to argue back and forth with each other.

'I'm busy too,' Hibari snapped.

Tsuna sighed heavily and massaged his temples to ease the oncoming headache. 'Hibari-san, it's only for one week. You and Mukuro are always with each other, so I thought you could tolerate his presence.'

Hibari's glare did not falter. 'I can tolerate him, herbivore, because I know that eventually he will get bored and leave me alone,' he explained sharply. 'But if we were to do an assignment together then I would be _stuck_ with the idiot. I've complied with your wishes and not killed him yet, but if I'm stuck with him for too long I don't know if he will make it back fully intact.'

'Think of it like this, Hibari-san,' Tsuna sighed, 'if you do alright with Mukuro on this assignment, then we may make him your official partner.'

'What?'

Tsuna bravely ignored him. 'That means that you won't have to come over to the Vongola base as much as you have to know because he would get all the information for you. Besides, it won't be that much different than being in Japan with him. You'll have separate rooms in the hotel - far, _far_ away from each other - and you'll only need to see him when you actually need to _do_ what is required.'

Hibari thought about it for a moment. It did sound tempting. If he agreed then he wouldn't ever really have to go back to the Vongola base since he could just get Mukuro to do everything and if things turned out the way that Tsuna said then there would be a chance were he would see less of the pineapple head than he already did. In the end, it was all down to what he disliked more.

'Fine,' he muttered.

Apparently, his hatred for the Vongola outweighed his hatred for Mukuro.

Surprising really.

* * *

**Was it rushed, or is that just my imagination?  
**

**Anyway, I won't feel right until I've got at least three more chapters written in advance, so I don't really know when I'll update!**


	4. Foreign Understandings

**Here's the next chapter! **

**It took a lot less time than I though it would - I guess it's OK though since this was wasn't as rushed as the last one. At least I don't think so anyway.**

**

* * *

Foreign Understandings **

It took a week before the two were actually sent away to France, where their assignment was, and most of those seven days were spent checking Mukuro's general health and prepping for what they were supposed to do. Hibari, before boarding the plane, decided to read through the manila folder than had been untouched since it was delivered to his room. The whole thing was boring and he discarded it half way through the first sheet. He would figure out what to do.

So, eventually, after the Vongola medical people decided that Mukuro was fit enough to leave the base (even though Mukuro would have left even if they didn't allow him), he and Hibari went off on their mission. It was going smoothly, until Mukuro decided that it would be fun to scare the hell out unwitting people who were in the airport.

Thankfully, the plane ride was uneventful - apart from the fact that Hibari _hated_ planes with a passion and ended up clutching the armrest for the journey. Also, there was the incident were Mukuro commented on how he found Hibari so 'cute' when he tried to repress his reluctant fear of airplanes, to which Hibari replied by ripping the armrest off and repetitively hitting him in the face. That was when he realized that he no longer had anything to clutch, and ended up gripping Mukuro's discarded jacket.

Other than that, they managed to get to France without any major problems. So what if the airport had their names and faces and decided to call the police because of the damage that Hibari had caused to the seat - they could easily get out of it.

Sorting out their little mess was easy and soon, after a day of settling in their hotel and having a rather pointless foreign argument with a Frenchman (Hibari couldn't speak French, the man couldn't speak Japanese) they finally found themselves breaking into a large, high-tech business like building. Complicated devices like key coders and fingerprint locks and retina scanners were easily bypassed with Mukuro there, when usually on an assignment Hibari would just break in, let the alarm blare and kill everything in sight. That, unfortunately for him, didn't need to happen this time.

He followed the illusionist with a bored expression on his face, not knowing exactly what they were supposed to be doing. Asking Mukuro was out of the question, since his pride just wouldn't allow it. Besides, the idiot also didn't read the information for their assignment, so he shouldn't really have known what to do either. But he did though, which shouldn't have really surprised Hibari. It was a fact that Mukuro knew almost everything thanks to that annoyingly brilliant mind of his.

As if he was reading Hibari's thoughts Mukuro spoke. 'France is the center of a worldwide drug ring,' he explained casually, smiling knowingly. 'The Vongola wants us to find incriminating information so that we can storm the place and basically kill everyone we come across.'

Hibari look towards Mukuro. 'Why can't we just kill them now?'

'Because, my dear Kyoya, Sawada Tsunayoshi isn't certain that this is in fact the center of operations.'

Hibari rolled his eyes. 'But you are?'

'Of course I am,' Mukuro chuckled, keying in a pass code to another door as if he belonged there. 'The French have been at it for twelve years now. It's about time somebody decided to do something.'

'Twelve years?' Hibari repeated, raising a brow.

'The drugs haven't hit Japan until recently, so the Vongola has only just found out. Selling drugs is also a great way to make money, especially if they've been doing it for twelve years,' Mukuro said. 'Which is exactly why this place is so fancy.' He gestured around extravagantly, doing a little twirl for emphasis. Hibari simply rolled his eyes again and punched Mukuro in the head for acting like an idiot.

'How are we supposed to gather this information if we can't speak the language?'

'Kufufu~ Who says I can't speak the language?' Mukuro chimed, grinning teasingly. Hibari stopped and glared at the illusionist.

'I didn't know you could speak French,' he glared, his brow twitching ever so slightly.

'I can speak many languages, Kyoya,' Mukuro chuckled. 'It's one of the advantages of living more than one life.'

'So you decided to let me struggle to speak to these French bastards when you could have easily just spoken to them yourself?' Hibari's temper was obviously rising at that point, and Mukuro could tell. Still, why would he waste an opportunity to annoy his favorite Skylark?

'Yes, I did' he said playfully. 'Maybe next time you should try speaking in English to them - they learn that in school.' All he got in return for his words of wisdom was a punch in the face. He was expecting that though and quickly ducked to avoid getting his teeth knocked out.

'I hate you.'

'You say that but you still tolerate my presence,' Mukuro stated, slinging a casual arm over Hibari's shoulder. The Cloud Guardian's glare deepened, but he neither confirmed nor denied it. He walked on, lightly shrugging Mukuro's arm away and stopping at a door that looked rather promising. Mukuro stepped forward and studied the door before coating his hand in an illusion. What replaced it was a darker, burlier looking limb and he used it to activate the fingerprint lock.

Hibari walked in first and looked around, totally uninterested in what was going on. He would be fine if he had people to bite to death, but they had yet to run into someone that had decided that they were a threat. They only came into contact with some weak looking idiots who thought that the two were higher ups in the organization. Hibari had decided that the French were idiots.

'Well, this looks interesting,' Mukuro stated blankly, letting his eyes dance around the room. All they saw were stacks upon stack of paper and pale yellow folders that slumped against army green filling cabinets. He shuffled further into the room, avoiding the mess of papers that were littered about on the floor as Hibari glared around, leaning against the door frame.

'Can't you do something to speed things up?' he asked as Mukuro began rifling through some papers.

'I'm not a miracle worker, Kyoya,' the illusionist replied. He knew that the place they were in was in fact the base of the drug ring that Tsuna was so worried about, but no doubt the Vongola boss would want proof. Mukuro couldn't even give Tsuna a fake document because of that damned hyper intuition of his. That only left him the option of searching through the room and finding something if he wanted to avoid yet another lecture.

'This will take forever,' Hibari snapped. Mukuro stood up straight and rubbed his chin with a nod.

'Hm, I think I know why Sawada Tsunayoshi decided to send me instead of Chrome,' he mused out loud. His smirk grew sinister and he turned to Hibari, hovering his finger over his lips as if he was asking him to be quiet. 'Stay here, Kyoya, I'll be right back.'

Usually, Hibari would give Mukuro a tonfa in the face for telling him what to do, but he was admittedly curious to what the idiot was planning. No doubt it would involve some crazy mind game and illusions. So, instead of reacting like he usually would, he leant against the wall and stared at a sheet of paper that was filled with a neat scrawl of French handwriting. He occupied his time by trying to decipher it.

Mukuro came back soon, insanely soon, and had a little mustached man following him. A trident cut was prominently noticeable on his chubby French cheeks.

'Chrome dislikes interrogating people,' Mukuro explained as he all but danced back into the room. 'She hates to see others in pain, but I really couldn't care less.' He chuckled loudly as he controlled the Frenchman, making him do strange twirls and spins before forcing him to sit on the floor.

'Sawada knew this would happen?'

'Well, he obviously assumed something,' Mukuro said with a light shrug. 'He probably guessed that the information would be near impossible to find unless we ask someone and nobody really likes my way of asking.'

Hibari grunted, knowing all too well of the illusionist unorthodox methods of getting the information her wanted. He turned his attention back to Mukuro and their victim.

'_Pouvez-vous parler Japonais?' _Mukuro asked, the foreign words rolling effortlessly off of his tongue. The man was allowed to nod slowly. 'Ah, Kyoya, you're in luck. He can speak Japanese. Surprising, really. Not a lot of the French can speak this language.'

Hibari glared at the man. 'Which means that you are probably the one who deals in Japan,' he said sharply. The man looked up at Hibari - a worry crease line in between in eyebrows as he noticed that the Cloud Guardian looked like he wanted to kill him.

'I will tell you nothing,' he snapped. His Japanese was rather good, but a little broken in places.

Mukuro bent down so he was eyelevel with the man and smiled that eerie smile of his. 'There are three ways I could do this,' he said softly. 'You could either tell Kyoya and I what we want to know and get out of here with just a few of your memories destroyed, or I could go into your mind, throw my consciousness around a little and leave you nothing more than a vegetable, _or_ I could make things up as I go along and I should warn you that things may get out of hand if that happens. It's your choice, my friend.'

The Frenchman looked disgusted. 'You Italians are trash! You think you can do anything you want,' he spat before turning his angry gaze to Hibari. 'And the Japanese! You are stupid, all of you! You buy our merchandise without any second thoughts!' Hibari's brow twitched as the man continued to add more fuel to the fire - completely unaware of how violent Hibari could get.

'What did you say?' he snapped. The man tried to reel backwards under Hibari's glare, but found that he was unable to as he couldn't overcome Mukuro's control over him. The illusionist held up his hand to stop Hibari from attacking the man and smiled.

'Well, I take it that the first option is out of the question,' he said playfully. 'So that leaves the other two.'

'Go with the last one' Hibari ordered. Mukuro looked up in surprise, but smiled as Hibari's glare penetrated into the little man, who now looked incredibly uncomfortable. It seemed that Hibari approved of how sadistic Mukuro could get when he was improvising.

'I will tell you nothing,' the man snapped again. Mukuro sat back on the heels of his feet in thought before a sinister smirk played across his features. He made the man hold out his hand and an illusionary carving knife materialized there. Shock registered in the man's face and his own arm edged towards his leg.

'I think you'll enjoy this Kyoya,' Mukuro said, a hint of madness in his eyes. Hibari leaned forward and watched with interest as the knife edged close and closer to the Frenchman's leg.

'What are you doing?' the Frenchman exclaimed, growing increasingly worried. Sweat ran down his face as his hand moved forcefully towards his leg, the knife grazing gently against the fabric of his slacks.

'Are you going to cooperate?' Mukuro asked in a sickly sweet voice. When he got no reply he made the knife move closer. The only response he got was a worried look and a couple of incoherent grunts of surprise and fear.

* * *

Mukuro lay back on the bed, slinging an arm under his head as he held the cell phone to his ear. 'Well, what if we weren't aware of the fact that he was one of the dealers who ran the whole operations,' he said with a playful smirk. They got the information they wanted, but they also accidentally killed the man that they were interrogating. Now, Mukuro had to report to Tsuna as Hibari was changing out of his bloodied suit.

Tsuna said something on the other line, to which Mukuro took his time to reply too. A wry smirk creeped upon his face and he let out a low chuckle - creeping Tsuna out a little. Mukuro always did manage to make his spine shiver.

'No, no, he didn't suffer. Well, not by my hands anyway,' he said offhandedly. 'Someone really ought to have told him that it is rather bad to cut off his own leg.'

Silence fell.

'_What?_' Tsuna's voice was so loud that Mukuro had to pull the phone away from his ear ever so slightly.

'You should have expected it, Sawada Tsunayoshi,' he chuckled. 'Then again, it wasn't just me. Kyoya wanted a turn by the time he was half way through the bone. It was fun keeping him conscious during it. In the end I had to keep him awake forcefully.' Tsuna sighed on the end of the line and told Mukuro to come back to Japan. There was no point in continuing with the assignment when the people they were after now knew that there were some strangers out to get them.

Mukuro laughed loudly and hung up as Hibari walked back into the room. Instead of his suit he wore a blue yukata and his hair was wet from the shower he had just had. The suit was just about ruined, really, since it was stained red with the blood from the little Frenchman. Mukuro was different, since he didn't exactly touch the man physically so his clothes were still as immaculate as they always were.

Hibari threw his ruined clothes in the corner of the room and glared at Mukuro, who was playfully tossing the phone around in his hands.

'Is there any particular reason you had to use _my_ phone?' he asked, raising a brow as Mukuro sat up lazily.

'Yes, actually,' replied the illusionist. 'I use my 'freaky mind powers', as you call them, when I need to communicate with people, so I don't have the need for phones.'

Hibari's glare deepened as he toweled his hair. 'So why don't you contact him the way you usually would.'

'Because the last time I went into his head to talk, I ended up searching through his memories and found out things that he would rather have kept to himself,' Mukuro explained, chuckling lightly at the memory. 'Since then he found a way to block me from entering his mind, so I have to find other means of pestering him.'

Hibari rolled his eyes and threw the towel to the corner where his ruined clothes were. Mukuro laughed and fell back down on Hibari's bed, not bothering to get up and go back to his own room, to which Hibari noted with a scowl.

'Get up and leave before I bite you to de-' he cut himself off abruptly and stared at Mukuro, a thought suddenly coming to mind. 'You're healthy.'

Mukuro blinked, but smirked all the same, as if he knew where this was going. 'Yes, I am,' he drawled, sitting up slowly again. 'Thank you for noticing.'

Hibari looked thoughtfully at the illusionist, before whipping his tonfa and letting a smirk work its way onto his face. 'Fight me,' he ordered.

The smile that Mukuro wore did not disappear as his eyes locked with the Cloud Guardian's. He leant back once again, this time stopping so he could lean on his elbows as he seemed to mull over the demand. Hibari looked serious, as if he was looking forward to this opportunity for a long time and Mukuro didn't blame. He knew how much Hibari loved to fight - especially with someone who was on par with him in battle.

'And here I thought you tolerate me because you enjoyed my company,' he said in mock hurt, holding a hand to his chest with a false pout on his face. Hibari said nothing, but simply held his tonfa up ready to fight. Humoring the Skylark, Mukuro lazily stood up, deliberately taking his time before conjuring up his trident.

Hibari's smirk stayed steady as his eyes followed Mukuro's casual form stroll towards him, trident in hand.

'In the hotel room, Kyoya, really?' asked Mukuro, stopping so he was about four steps away from Hibari.

'Yes, really,' Hibari replied. 'No boxes, no illusions. Just you and me. We'll see who is really the stronger.'

Mukuro shrugged. 'I must say that I am curious too,' he said thoughtfully. 'But what will happen if you cannot live up to your reputation as the strongest Guardian?'

'That won't happed,' Hibari said.

'If you say so, Kyoya.' And with that, Mukuro attacked.

He spun his trident over his head, avoiding the ceiling light, and brought it down heavily, intending to deal a rather harsh blow only to have it countered by the tonfa. Hibari, blocking Mukuro's attack with one arm, swung the other around, furrowing his brow when it was dodged quite easily. Mukuro chuckled and twirled out of the way of a heavy blow but was quickly hit down but a tonfa to the stomach,

It hurt much more than it should have, considering he had only just recovered from his stay in Vendice, but did not dwell on the fact. It felt good to be in _real _pain for once, instead of letting Chrome's body take his blows. The thought may have sound a little masochistic, but staying in a glass tube for ten years really took away the feeling of everything, so he welcomed the pain with open arms. That, however, didn't mean that he actually _wanted_ the feeling.

Cocking his head to one side, he grinned. It seemed that Hibari was enjoying himself, even if he didn't like to admit it. Mukuro ran his tongue over his lips and charged forwards again, swinging his trident quickly and heavily catching Hibari's in his ribs. The Skylark jumped backwards - his pride preventing him from clutching the maybe-broken bones in his torso. Instead, he smirked. It had been a while since someone had injured him. It just gave him the motivation to battle harder, and nobody wanted to be the target for his attacks.

Mukuro was different though. He would willingly injure Hibari and would counter any harsh attack that was thrown his way. That was why he was fun to fight - was why Hibari _liked_ to fight him.

'It seems like years since we last fought,' Mukuro remarked, twisting his body around to avoid a swing of the tonfa.

Hibari narrowly dodged a slash of the trident. 'It has been years,' he said back. The yukata he had only just changed into was ripped in some places, but still miraculously clung to his body, as if it did not want to fall off. Mukuro's clothes, which had been so immaculate, shared the shame fate. His jacket was useless and his shirt was slightly ripped at the stomach. His ridiculous boots, however, managed to avoid being in the brunt of an attack.

The tonfa clashed with the trident, and Mukuro let a knowing grin creep up on his face. With quick movements, he spun the trident, sending Hibari's weapons to the floor. Not admitting defeat, Hibari charged at Mukuro with his fists, only to be caught by Mukuro's hands. The illusionist pinned Hibari's wrists and pushed him backwards forcefully, until he was pressed against the wall.

'What are you doing?' Hibari demanded as he was restrained against the wall.

Mukuro tilted his head. 'I think I know the reason to your constant need for violence,' he murmured in a suspiciously low voice. His head leaned closer to Hibari's and he pressed his lips to the smaller man's ear, whispering something incoherent. Whatever it was, it seemed to do the trick as Hibari's face turned from his usual pale self to a pink-red.

'You pervert,' he managed to splutter. Mukuro smirked.

'I think, Kyoya, we can count this as my win.' Before Hibari could argue, Mukuro had leant down and kissed him hard, shocking him. He let out a short gasp and on instinct he tried to pull away, only succeeding in smashing his head against the wall and earning a chuckle from the illusionist.

It was so wrong. It was wrong that Mukuro was kissing him - it was wrong that he had begun to kiss back. It was just all wrong. As if to emphasis his thoughts, he forcefully pulled his hands away and punched Mukuro in the stomach.

'Now that wasn't very nice,' said Mukuro, smirking down at him.

'Shut up,' he snapped. He yanked Mukuro's face back down to meet his own again and smashed their lips together, almost certainly bruising them both. So what if it was all wrong. He had done things that weren't right before - what was the harm in adding one more thing to the list. The thought that it was _Mukuro_ that he was making out with didn't seem to bother him, well, not at that moment anyway. He was a man - he had needs.

They stumbled away from the wall and fell sideways onto the bed.

He'll find time to regret later.

* * *

**You've got to admit, Mukuro _does_ look like the type of guy to know a lot of languages. Anyway, I've finally managed to put in some actual 6918! I'm pretty worried about them being in character or not in the last bit, but I suppose it's OK. Not too rushed, I hope.**

**OK, next chapter _might_ be pushing the rating up to M. Do people want smut? I personally don't mind either way - it's all up to you. :D**


	5. Hate

**Right, this is my first attempt at smut, like, _ever _so I'm pretty anxious on how people will take it. So yeah, constructive criticism is very much appreciated.**

**

* * *

Hate **

It should have been pretty simple - as they both wanted the same thing. However, both being as stubborn as they were they just couldn't decide on one thing. Who was going to be seme? Obviously, Hibari wasn't going to give up, and Mukuro was just having fun battling out for dominance. They fell to the bed unceremoniously, still kissing furiously as they grappled around as if they were battling, shedding clothes as they went along. It would have gone smoothly if they could actually get Mukuro's boots off. Hibari had to sit back and watch as Mukuro tried to pull his footwear off, chuckling in amusement and commenting on how he never really thought this through.

Finally, the stupid thigh high boots were thrown to the corner of the room, where they hit the wall and made a shoe shaped dent. Hibari rolled his eyes at the interruption and was promptly tackled by the illusionist. Mukuro pinned him down and claimed his lips with his own, prying Hibari's mouth open with his tongue and exploring his mouth possessively.

The yukata the Hibari wore was quickly undone, exposing his warm torso to which Mukuro immediately went down too. His mouth ran down the stomach experimentally, running his tongue along the taunt muscles and dipping into the navel every now and again. Hibari pulled at Mukuro's shirt, and managed to pull it over his head with hardly breaking contact with each other.

Eventually, almost all clothes were tossed aside, leaving Mukuro completely naked and Hibari still wearing his now open yukata as they feverishly became intimate.

Hibari was very much aware of the arousal pressed against his thigh as Mukuro came back up from his stomach to meet his lips again - but he just couldn't bring himself to stop. Maybe it was because his own erection was brushing against Mukuro. After all, what man would want to stop once they started?

He did however break the kiss when he felt fingers probing around his behind. He glared accusingly at Mukuro, who had ended up straddling him some where along the line.

'What are you doing?' he asked huskily. Mukuro smirked.

'What do you think?' the illusionist replied, letting his fingers trace around his rear slowly. Hibari's glare deepened and he pushed Mukuro, swapping so that he was on top instead.

'There is no way I'm going on the bottom,' he snapped, pushing Mukuro down forcefully as if to emphasis his point. The Mist Guardian smirked up at him, raising a brow at Hibari who was scowling down at him.

'I think you're mistaken, Kyoya,' Mukuro laughed, flipping them over again and nipping at Hibari's neck with his teeth. 'Its only natural that the taller of the two goes on top. And guess what? I'm taller.'

'So? I'm older,' Hibari retorted as he was pinned down again.

'Not if you include my past lives.'

'I'm stronger, then.'

Mukuro leaned down so that his lips were pressed up against Hibari ear. 'You have yet to prove that fact, Kyoya,' he whispered somewhat lustfully. He pulled himself up, so that he was sat on Hibari's stomach and stared down at him with a smirk.

'If I'm not the top then we're not doing this,' he snapped. Mukuro did not budge from his sitting position, knowing that Hibari was half-lying.

'You enjoy to make things difficult, don't you,' he remarked casually. 'We're going to do this, Kyoya, whether I have your consent or not.' He turned his head around and gazed at Hibari's crotch in what appeared to be interest. 'And by the way things are going, I don't think it will take a lot to get you to agree.'

Hibari's face flushed a pale red as he struggled under Mukuro, only to have himself pinned down by illusions. If he was in the right state of mind he wouldn't be fooled by some stupid mind game as he had spent years training against them, but he was almost completely aroused and his head was in turmoil, so the illusions that Mukuro had used to restrain him felt and looked completely real.

'I hate you so much,' he hissed.

Mukuro smirked and wrapped his hand around Hibari's half-hard erection. 'Your body tells me otherwise,' he stated playfully, smugly grinning as Hibari tried to bite back a gasp. The Cloud Guardian glared halfheartedly at Mukuro, but couldn't stop the groans that forced their way out from the back of his throat while the illusionist hand began pumping him at a slow, maddening pace. Grinding his teeth, he gripped the sheets on the bed, not wanting to give Mukuro the satisfaction of hearing him moan out loud. With the way he was going he was probably going to end up as the uke, but he just couldn't help it. Why would he want Mukuro to stop when it felt so good? His fists curled into the sheets, gripping them tighter as he struggled to keep a glare on his face. In his defense, he did _think_ about pushing Mukuro away from him, but that thought was quickly destroyed as he felt a pair of wet lips wrap around his arousal. Mukuro chuckled as Hibari automatically arched his back, trying to force more of himself into the illusionists mouth.

'I'll kill you,' he moaned. Mukuro chuckled and swirled his tongue around the tip over his manhood as he moved his mouth tauntingly slow up and down it, licking off the taste of the pre-cum.

He lifted his head slowly and looked at Hibari. 'You may be the big bad Cloud Guardian, Kyoya,' he said, 'but you look so cute when you submit.' Hibari's glare steadied as his arousal went neglected.

'I'm not submitting,' he managed to say. Mukuro shrugged and eyed Hibari's crotch, as if he was deciding whether to continue or not. In the end, he went back down and licked it slowly.

'Is this all you can do?' Hibari snapped, scowling down at the illusionist. 'Pathetic.' Mukuro raised a brow and pulled the member in deeper, deepthroating it as far as it would go. Hibari tried to muffle a groan but failed miserably. He could see Mukuro smirking at him through his lashes and suddenly felt very uke-like.

Their positions were all settled the moment he released in Mukuro's mouth. His head fell back onto the bed with a low moan while Mukuro crawled up him, licking his lips sensually. He chuckled lowly and sank his teeth deeply into the Cloud Guardian's neck, leaving his mark. Hibari moaned and managed to lift his hands to hit Mukuro.

'You bastard,' he panted. 'That's going to be noticeable.' Mukuro ignored him and ran his tongue over the mark, lapping up the blood he drew with his bite. His hands wandered around Hibari's body, slipping the yukata off fully before stroking creamy thighs and probing around his rear again. Hibari's face flushed red in embarrassment as a single finger slipped into him, soon followed by a second. He shuffled awkwardly as he felt Mukuro scissor inside of him.

He had slept with men before - he knew how everything went. It was just that he had never been topped. He had always been the one in charge, so he had a right to be shocked when Mukuro got the better off him.

It just grew even more uncomfortable when a third finger entered him. And was that pain? He glared up at Mukuro, who was staring at him with an amused expression as his fingers went in and out, stretching and preparing him from what was yet to come. All Hibari could do was lie there an accept it, since he couldn't really be bothered arguing now. He would be lying if he said he wasn't a little bit apprehensive as Mukuro's hands stroked down his thighs and parted his legs. He had never been uke before. Then again, he was strong. He could take any sort of pain.

'You don't look so good, Kyoya,' Mukuro mocked as his teased Hibari's entrance with the tip of his erection. 'Are you sure you can take it?'

'If you don't hurry up, Rokudo Mukuro, I will persona-_ah!' _He was cut off unceremoniously by Mukuro thrusting into him, with absolutely no lubricants to ease the entry.

The pain shot through him immediately, crashing through his body and wracking his nerves violently. He bite back a sharp pained gasp and reluctantly gripped onto Mukuro to stop himself for doing something potentially herbivorous.

'Are you OK?'

Hibari said nothing. He just clutched Mukuro's back and nodded - not wanting to admit weakness, especially to someone like the damned illusionist. Mukuro did not continue with the thrusting, instead he stopped and waited for his partner to get used to the feeling. He was, after all, a virgin to being the bottom. Mukuro could feel blood coming from him.

'I'm surprised, Kyoya,' he said quietly. 'A lot of people pass out because of the pain.'

Hibari looked up at him, a weary look on his face. 'What do you take me for?' he snapped. 'Just carry on.'

Mukuro smiled. 'I intend to.'

The blood made it easier to slip in and out of Hibari, so Mukuro used it as the lubricant that he neglected to apply. Still, it was obvious that Hibari was still in pain but to his credit he hid it quite well. Then again, Mukuro was always great at reading other people's expressions, no matter how well they concealed them.

Even so, he didn't go easy on the Skylark. His thrashes were rough and he gripped his hips harshly, probably leaving bruises. Hibari tried to ignore the pain, and focused on trying not to let out any sort of sound, seeing as that anything that wanted to come out was either a whimper of pain (which he was never going to do) or a moan of pleasure.

Soon, however, he let one slip. He groaned heavily and tightened his grip on the illusionist and Mukuro mentally congratulated himself for finding Hibari's sweet spot. He chuckled and grunted as he thrust in deeper, no longer worrying if he was hurting the Cloud Guardian. Breathy pants and shallow rasps and long, low moans are all that came from the two as Mukuro continued to plow into him. He released Hibari's hips from his grip and curled his fingers into the sheets to keep himself steady so that he would not fall on top of the smaller man. Hibari, who until this moment had been doing nothing, reached up and gripped Mukuro's arms, leaving angry red marks where his fingernails had grazed as his hips began to buck automatically, meeting Mukuro's halfway.

Moans and groans drowned out everything, and any coherent words dissolved before they could even think them up. Hibari's mind was in a jumble of thoughts that just didn't make sense as he was flooded with waves of pleasure and pain. His senses became numb and his eyes refused to open as Mukuro thrust into him, making sure to hit his prostate each time.

Short fingernails dug into Mukuro's arms, drawing blood as he roughly and mercilessly pounded into Hibari, grinding his teeth as moans ripped out form the back of his throat. His limbs felt tired and overused, but he curled his fists and forced them to stay up. He didn't want to fall down straight in the middle of sex, because that would just provoke Hibari into going into a violent frenzy for not finishing what he started.

Hibari was the one to release first - the mixture of pain and pleasure finally overwhelming him and he fell backwards, breathing heavily and groaning when Mukuro shortly followed and exploded inside of him. The illusionist then allowed himself to collapse, skin making a slapping sound when he fell on top of Hibari.

Neither of them said anything for a while in favor of catching their breaths and recovering from their blissful release.

'Get off of me,' Hibari snapped breathlessly, warily pushing Mukuro off of him. Almost immediately after Mukuro had rolled off of him he turned onto his stomach to get pressure off of his burning rear. 'I hate you.'

'So you keep saying,' Mukuro panted. He sat up and cracked his neck as Hibari pooled the sheets around himself, intending to go to sleep.

'You speak of this to no one,' he ordered, his voice muffled by the pillow.

'I understand,' agreed Mukuro. 'But you know, Kyoya, I _am_ expecting this to be a regular thing.' Hibari didn't say anything for a while and if Mukuro didn't know any better he would have thought that the Cloud Guardian was asleep. That wasn't the case though.

Hibari yawned. 'Whatever,' he answered. Mukuro smirked - taking it as a 'yes'.

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**How was that for a first try? I don't know if I did or good job or not, so any sort of review, be it nice ones or bad ones, will be happily accepted! :D**


	6. Return to Japan

******OK, chapter updates are probably going to get a little erratic from now on, as I am on study leave and I really need to do my revision for my exams. I keep putting everything off, not noticing how close they actually are... So yeah, I don't know when I'll next update, but I'll try to make it as quick as possible. **

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Return to Japan**

One would assume that things would be awkward between the two now that they had slept together, since under most circumstances with most people it would be horribly tense to even be in the same room. Hibari and Mukuro were not most people though. In fact, it was totally normal between them. They still bickered and there was no flirting (on Hibari's part) and certainly no public displays of affection. Sure, every now and again Mukuro would grope Hibari a little, but he was always rewarded with a tonfa to the face. Anyway, after their night together they made their way back to Japan since their mission completely botched up because of that one unplanned death. This time there were even less problems, since the fuck in the plane's bathroom took Hibari's mind off of the fact that he hated not being on solid ground.

They weren't even recognized by any of the staff that threatened to call the police on them thanks to a well placed illusion.

So, after returning to Japan and getting a lecture from Tsuna for needlessly killing people when they could be sent to prison or something (to which Hibari replied by somehow handcuffing the Tenth to the ceiling) they went back to their usual routine of slipping into Hibari's room and drinking green tea. Only now they had an excellent stress relief at their disposal - and with how stressed Mukuro made Hibari it became a common thing for them.

Naturally, there was no feelings involved with their 'agreement'. It was just no strings attached sex - a way to calm down and mellow out in Hibari's case and something to do for fun in Mukuro's. It was also great exercise, but that wasn't really all that relevant to be honest.

The second time they fucked was, as said earlier, in the plane bathroom and once again Hibari was made to be uke. It seemed that as long as Mukuro was the person he slept with he would never be able to top. That thought annoyed the hell out of him, but he had to admit that it felt _damn_ good being on the bottom, no matter how humiliating it was. Hibari supposed that being uke had it's good points. Sure there was a little (more like a lot) of pain involved, but at least he didn't have to do any of the work. He could just lay back and let Mukuro do everything.

No one knew anything about their little affair (apart from maybe Chrome - Hibari didn't know how much she and Mukuro were actually connected, so she may have found out somehow), but they made in so unobvious that it was understandable. Everyone already thought that Mukuro was a pervert so they just pinned as normal when he decided to flirt in public. There _was_ that time where someone spotted the very noticeable bite mark on Hibari's neck, but Ryohei was stupid enough to believe that the mark was from a fight. Since the Sun Guardian made that discovery Hibari had taken to making sure nobody could see the mark. Mukuro had gotten a fist to the face and a knee to the groin when he chuckled at the Cloud Guardian's attempts to hide it.

Anyway, it had been just under a week since they came back from France and it seemed that Mukuro had been receiving more glares than usual because of the failed assignment. He didn't care though - he wasn't there at the base because he _chose_ to be.

'Why are you here?' Hibari asked as Mukuro made himself comfortable on the mat in the room. Automatically did Hibari pour him some tea before cursing himself mentally for growing so accustomed to the pineapple head's presence.

'Because I'm always here, Kyoya,' Mukuro replied, accepting the tea happily. He sipped at it quietly before leaning his elbows on the table, cocking his head as he noticed Kusakabe's suspicious stare. Resisting the urge to childishly stick out his tongue, he turned back to Hibari, who was glaring at him.

'And you don't have anywhere else to go?'

Mukuro smiled and let out a low chuckle. 'Why would I go anywhere else when I could be here with you?' Hibari rolled his eyes and pushed his now empty cup along the table, snorting at the ridiculous answer. Mukuro winked and laughed out loud while Kusakabe stood up straighter - seemingly warier now that Mukuro had let out another laugh. This time he really did stick his tongue out at him, which just earned him a strange look from Hibari and a suspicious glare from Kusakabe.

The illusionist drew his hand out and plucked up another cup, filling it to the brim, even though his own was still half full. He ignored Hibari's gaze as he set the extra cup down next to him with a knowing, lopsided smile on his face.

'And what about the Dokuro girl?' Hibari asked - not too sure why he was continuing with the conversation. Mukuro tilted his head slightly and closed his eyes as if he was in thought.

'I spend plenty of time with my dear Chrome,' he explained offhandedly. 'She just so happens to be elsewhere at the moment.' Hibari rolled his eyes once again and chose not to pursue the subject anymore. Instead he changed the topic.

He nodded to the extra cup for. 'What's with that?' he said. Mukuro lazily cast his glance to the cup before smiling somewhat sardonically.

'It seems that we will soon have a visit from Sawada Tsunayoshi,' he remarked. Hibari snorted and glared bitterly down at the table. It was not often Tsuna came to visit him, and only came when there was something very important to discuss. In fact, the Tenth Vongola boss came a lot less than he used to since Mukuro had come back. Hibari supposed that there had to be some good thing about the illusionist being freed from the prison.

Well, that and the sex was admittedly amazing.

Anyway, having a rare visit from Tsuna seemed to perk Hibari's interest as he glared at the table. It must be something important - that or the fact that whatever Tsuna wanted was recently decided so he had nobody around to call Hibari in for a meeting, which wasn't entirely unheard of. Besides, the Tenth probably knew that there was an extremely slim chance that Hibari would actually take the time out of his schedule to see him.

There was also the possibility of Tsuna wanted to see Mukuro. Hibari didn't even know how many times people had come into his room asking for the illusionist. Where they really together that much? Shrugging, Hibari put Tsuna's visit to the back of his mind. Surely he would figure it out later.

'You don't seem to be too happy about that,' Mukuro noticed with a smile. Hibari glared at him blankly, not bothering to retort. 'Don't worry, Kyoya. He's not coming to see you.'

'Why can't he see you in _your_ room?' he snapped.

Mukuro shrugged lightly. 'Because I'm here, aren't I. He knows that I hardly ever go to my room, I find that it bores me.'

'I still don't see why you insist on spending time with me anyway, herbivore,' Hibari muttered, narrowing his eyes at Mukuro.

The illusionist reached over and pinched Hibari's cheeks. 'It's because you're just so adorable.' His hand was swatted away viciously and Kusakabe stepped forward once again, keeping his deliberate scowl on Mukuro. He was usually a laidback sort of man (having to deal with Hibari day after day) but he just couldn't trust the illusionist. All he got in return for his glare was a chuckle and a wink.

Kusakabe bit his lip to prevent himself from protesting and looked to Hibari expectantly. 'Kyo-san, will you be needing anything?'

Hibari turned his gaze lazily to his subordinate, as if he had forgotten that he was there. 'No.'

Nodding his head and sending a lingering, suspicious glance to Mukuro, Kusakabe left, presumably to go to his drinking appointment with Romario. Hibari thought nothing of it and turned his attention back to his neglected drink while Mukuro nursed the hand that was slapped with a mock pout on his face. He smirked as Kusakabe left the room.

'Someone seems grumpy,' he chuckled, nodding his head in the direction of the door.

Hibari snorted. 'He just doesn't trust you.'

'Hm, I don't blame him. I wouldn't trust me either if I was in his shoes. Or anyone else's for that matter,' laughed Mukuro. 'In fact, I don't expect to be trusted for a long time.' He didn't seem to be the slightest bit upset in that fact. Hibari nodded, only half-listening as he swirled the tea around in his cup.

His thoughts, whatever they were, we abruptly cut off as they heard a loud knock rap against the door. Hibari looked up in distaste as Tsuna poked his head around the corner, silently asking permission to enter. Hibari gave no such permission but the Tenth came in anyway, smiling a somewhat forced smile.

'Ah, Sawada Tsunayoshi,' Mukuro greeted, sliding the extra cup he poured towards Tsuna. 'How nice of you to finally join us.' Tsuna, for a moment, looked like he wanted to ask how Mukuro knew that he was coming, but then decided to say nothing since it _was_ Mukuro he was talking about.

He ignored the seat that Mukuro offered him and rubbed the back of his head. 'I hope I'm not getting in the way of anything?' he said somewhat sheepishly. Hibari raised a brow and snorted before turning his head away in deliberate ignorance, shrugging one shoulder a little higher than the other in a subconscious attempt to hide the hickey that decorated his neck.

'Of course not,' Mukuro smiled. He waved Tsuna to come closer, but the Tenth stayed were he was, not quiet believing that Mukuro and Hibari were in the same room drinking tea with absolutely no bloodshed going on. Then again, he had been to the future and become the tenth boss of one of the most respective Mafia Families, so he supposed that anything was possible.

He straightened his posture slightly. 'You're aware that nobody is very happy with the turnout of your last assignment, Mukuro,' he said slowly, as if he was picking his words carefully, 'but since it wasn't exactly _all _your fault, I've decided to give you another chance.'

Mukuro raised a brow, but said nothing.

'Reborn agrees with me. We think that you should be stable enough to go on an assignment on your own - providing you keep contact with at least one Guardian, most likely Chrome, at all times.'

'I like to think that you are doing this because you wish to trust me,' Mukuro chuckled, 'but I know better than that. Tell me, Vongola, what are you thinking?'

Tsuna shuffled awkwardly for a moment, before accepting the tea that was offered to him. 'I _do_ want to trust you, Mukuro,' he claimed, trying to make eye contact but finding that he gaze kept wandering down to the cup in his hand, 'but we just don't know yet. Nobody is comfortable with you around. In fact, people are starting to talk about how you killed that man purposely.' Mukuro smirked and was about to say something, but was cut off by Hibari.

'Sawada, it was I who dealt the final blow,' Hibari said - not entirely sure why he was defending Mukuro.

'I'm aware, Hibari-san,' Tsuna sighed. 'And that's exactly the reason why I've decided to let Mukuro have another chance at earning the trust of the Family. You were keeping an eye on him and it still ended up that way. Mukuro could prove to the Family that he can be trusted if I send him on his own.' He turned to the Mist Guardian. 'Maybe it will convince everyone that you are actually our ally.'

The room seemed to grow a little bit darker, and both Tsuna and Hibari could tell that Mukuro's mood had gone down dramatically. His smile stiffened and his eyes narrowed into some sort of a glare.

'I am not your ally, Sawada Tsunayoshi,' he said slowly, dangerously.

Tsuna's gaze did not falter and he paused, staring at the illusionist and analyzing his movements, as if he feared that Mukuro was planning to attack him then and there. 'Fine,' he announced. 'You are not our ally, but you _do_ intend to help us.'

'As long as it is in my best interest,' Mukuro claimed. 'You are aware why I must help, aren't you?'

'I am. And you were warned what would happen if you go against us.'

Mukuro smirked, the atmosphere in the room already lightening. 'Which is why I see no reason to go against you just yet. I wouldn't want the pretense of my freedom to be taken away from me, now would I?'

'What do you mean by "pretense"?' Tsuna dared to ask warily.

'Oh please,' Mukuro chuckled, flapping his hand at Tsuna. 'If I were truly free I would be permitted to leave the Vongola base and meet my subordinates without any hassle. If I were free I would be able to sit in a room on my own for extended periods of time without members of the Family dashing towards me and accusing me of plotting something potentially harmful to you, Sawada Tsunayoshi.'

'Muku-'

'Kufufu. You humans need to realize that while I may be brilliant, I am not _always _plotting to take over the world. I do have other priorities.'

Tsuna sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. 'That isn't true, Mukuro,' he said.

'Oh? Then why is it that almost every time I leave Kyoya's room I have Gokudera Hayato running towards me and flat out interrogating me because I just so happen to be on my own. He doesn't seem to understand that the answer I give him is in fact the truth, nor that I can defeat him with one single illusion.'

'Well then,' Tsuna said, ignoring the last statement as he tried to come to some sort of understanding, 'if you do this assignment perfectly then I will personally speak to all my Guardian's and I will make sure everyone becomes more lenient with you. I can expand your boundaries and allow you to see your Kokuyo Gang. I do want someone who can communicate with you at all times, but you won't have a constant babysitter. Does that sound fair?'

Mukuro laughed. 'It doesn't, not at all,' he chuckled, 'but I suppose that it's the best option I have at the moment.' Tsuna frowned but nodded all the same, somewhat put off by Mukuro's carefree behavior

'Thank you,' he said, putting down the tea he was given earlier. Mukuro smirked. 'It's short notice, but you'll be leaving for Italy on Saturday, so you only have tomorrow to prepare for it. We think that now one of the drug ring leaders has died that they have moved their bases of operations to Italy.'

'They have,' Mukuro mentioned.

Tsuna ignored him. 'It's all very simple, an assignment that is admittedly to low for someone of your ability but I don't want to give you anything more important until everyone can agree how valuable you are to the Vongola. I know you don't read them, but just incase I have had a brief made out for you,' he said while handing Mukuro an manila envelope. 'Everything you need to do is in there.'

Mukuro nodded, his amusement quickly switching to boredom as he carelessly flung the envelope behind him, not intending to read it at all. 'Is that all, Sawada Tsunayoshi?' he asked, already knowing the answer.

'Oh, yes,' he said, pulling at his collar before giving Hibari a slight bow. 'Sorry for disturbing you, Hibari-san.'

'Hn.'

Tsuna smiled and headed towards the door before stopping and raising a brow. 'Hibari-san, what on Earth is on your neck?'

Hibari immediately turned an almost unnoticeable shade of pink as he hunched up his shoulders and Mukuro laughed. Tsuna just didn't want to know.

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**And there we go - chapter six over and done with. I don't know how many I've got left to write up, probably about four or five more. It depends on if I get some inspiration or not.**

**Oh yeah, and those who didn't understand the last bit (because when I showed my friend she didn't get it at all) Tsuna is talking about the hickey on Hibari's neck.**


	7. Disturbing Agitation

**This chapter came a little later than I originally planned, but at least it's here. Exams are creeping up and I'm more interested in writing up chapters than actually revising. Oh well, I'll live I guess.**

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**Disturbing Agitation**

Hibari awoke on Saturday morning completely naked, with nothing but his yukata covering his body. His lower back ached and there was some sort of a chill in the room. This did nothing for his already dismal mood, since he wasn't exactly a morning person (or afternoon, evening or night person). To top it all off, Mukuro had decided to spend the night, and Hibari fell asleep before he could kick him out. That was the disturbance that woke the Cloud Guardian that morning. Mukuro was shuffling about the room, searching for his belongings so he could leave.

He caught Hibari's glare. 'Good morning, Kyoya,' he said quietly, flashing a smile. Hibari grunted and turned to his side, deliberately ignoring Mukuro in favor of trying to fall back to sleep. Unfortunately, thanks to his annoying trait of being a light sleeper, he decided that he would wait until Mukuro left.

Chuckling, Mukuro turned away and continued to look for his boots as he tied his hair up in the usual low ponytail.

'What time is it?' Hibari muttered from where he was. Mukuro almost didn't hear him.

'Early, go back to sleep,' he said. Usually, Hibari would react violently if Mukuro told him what to do, but to be honest he was all too willing to go back into a slumber - he was just so tired. Now, if only the damned illusionist would go away and leave him alone. How the bastard could even wake up that early (whatever time it actually was) Hibari didn't know. It must have something to do with his creepy powers, he reasoned.

Mukuro walked around the room, finding pieces of clothing that were in ridiculous places. Like his left boot, which had somehow gotten lodged in a hole in the ceiling that Mukuro was _sure_ was not there before. He shrugged it off and forced the boot on, chuckling quietly when he found it difficult. He peered around again - the other one should be about somewhere.

Soon, after finding _almost_ everything (he must remember to find his underwear upon returning from the assignment), he headed out, stopping at the door before leaving, knowing that Hibari was still awake. 'I'll see you soon, Kyoya,' he remarked.

Hibari groaned. 'Hn.' He could barely register Mukuro's chuckle as he finally fell asleep again. Eventually, however, he awoke once more - still feeling terrible as he struggled to sit up, cursing everything he could think of as he slipped on the yukata he had used as a blanket before ignoring the searing pain in his behind. He walked through to the next room, forcing himself not to limp while Kusakabe finished setting out the teapot as if he had sensed that Hibari had awakened.

'Good afternoon, Kyo-san,' he greeted, nodding his head respectively. Hibari grunted his reply, not caring that he had slept all the way through to the afternoon, and sat down heavily, feeling a headache coming on as he poured the usual two cups of tea.

He didn't realize his mistake until after both were filled to the top. Settling his glare down onto the cups, he pressed his lips into a tight thin line. Was he so used to Mukuro's presence that he would automatically pour more than one cup? Apparently he was. Angry at himself for getting used to the man he claimed to hate the most he picked up the extra cup and flung it across the room, listening to the satisfying smash when it made impact with the wall.

'Clean that up,' he ordered. Kusakabe nodded and scurried out of the room, leaving Hibari to wallow in his annoyance. It was bad enough that he had to deal with Mukuro day and sometimes night, now he was even thinking about the idiot when he wasn't even there! The thought angered Hibari - mainly because he _was_ supposed to _hate_ Mukuro.

He supposed, however, that his fate was sorted out the moment he kissed Mukuro back when they were in France. His needs took over his common sense and now he had somehow been drawn into a regular thing with the bastard. It was a weakness that he hated but just couldn't get rid off. Hibari took a sip of his tea, still glaring at the cup that was now lying in shards on the floor.

Kusakabe chose that moment to rush back into the room, a square piece of cloth in his hands as he made his way to the spill. He sent a quick, almost anxious glance Hibari's way to see if the former Prefect was angry with him. To his relief, Hibari had shut his eyes and was quietly sipping tea with furrowed brows. Returning his attention back to the broken cup, he quickly and efficiently cleaned up, smiling in satisfaction when everything was spotless.

'Anything else, Kyo-san?' he asked. Hibari opened his eyes and curtly shook his head before waving Kusakabe away, not bothering to say anything else. Kusakabe nodded and bowed slightly before walking out of the room, making way for Tsuna who had decided to visit Hibari that day.

'Afternoon, Hibari-san,' greeted the boss. Hibari grunted and made no other moves to acknowledge Tsuna's presence. The man had been coming around a lot recently and quite frankly Hibari was getting annoyed. He hated to be associated with Tsuna and the Family and letting the Tenth boss barge into his home every other day just because Mukuro had taken to settling down there each day was not acceptable to Hibari.

Tsuna boldly sat down without asking for permission and stared at Hibari in silence, as if he was waiting for Hibari to speak first, when it was obvious that the Cloud Guardian would not talk to Tsuna unless he _had _to give a reply. Eventually, Tsuna decided to start.

'How have you been, Hibari-san?' he asked, making small talk. Hibari raised a brow. 'Right, sorry. I'll get straight to the point.'

'Please do,' Hibari muttered - totally uninterested in what Tsuna had to say.

Tsuna paused to think over his words, something he had to do a lot when dealing with Hibari. 'I wanted to, for lack of better word, _warn_ you.'

Once again Hibari raised a brow, taking a guess at what Tsuna was talking about. 'This is about Mukuro,' he said. Tsuna nodded, and Hibari repressed a sigh. Why did the boss always come to him when he needed to talk about the illusionist?

'He went away on the mission today, and from what Chrome's told us he hasn't done anything regrettable yet,' Tsuna chuckled, albeit somewhat nervously. 'That's maybe because he hasn't gotten off the plane yet.'

'Do you have a point somewhere, or are you just wasting my time?'

'Anyway, I can see that there is some level of trust between you and Mukuro,' Tsuna said, faintly nodding towards the fading hickey on Hibari's neck, 'but I wanted to make sure you knew what you are getting into.'

'Let's get this straight, Sawada,' Hibari snapped, 'I don't trust that herbivore, nor will I ever and I sleep with him because I feel like it. Whatever you think is going on between me and the damned illusionist you're probably wrong. I know exactly what I'm doing.'

Tsuna shuffled uncomfortably in his seat. The news of Hibari and Mukuro's twisted relationship came as a shock to him. He never thought it possible, but the way Mukuro chuckled when Tsuna spotted the hickey on Hibari's neck told the Vongola boss exactly what was going on. He had paled and was threatened to keep it quiet under pain of a very violent, Hibari-induced death. Naturally, he left (more like fled) the room before he could provoke Hibari's wrath, and could very well hear the Cloud Guardian hit Mukuro back in the room.

Not seeing anything wrong with Hibari and Mukuro being sort of together Tsuna allowed it, but he promised himself that he would not be sending them on a lot of assignments together, like he originally intended to. The hopes of having a completely unstoppable team in the Vongola were washed down the drain, since it would be unprofessional to send two people that were involved with each other on assignments together. Now that he thought about it, he guessed that it was for the best. He supposed that he should be happy that he had decided to stop the partnership he had encouraged before Hibari and Mukuro did something that would be bad news for the Vongola. You never know when Mukuro would suddenly decide to get all manipulative on everybody. Tsuna didn't want Hibari to be dragged into something that would be difficult to stop. Even the Tenth wasn't sure if he could beat the two in a team up.

'I just want you to be careful,' he said. 'I don't want you to be controlled by Mukuro.'

For the third time that afternoon Hibari raised a brow. 'I think I can take care of myself, Sawada.'

'I'm aware, Hibari-san,' Tsuna continued, 'but you have to face it. Mukuro is much stronger than you when it comes to the mind. You wouldn't stand a chance if he suddenly decided to use your body to destroy the Family.'

Hibari glared. 'I'm not stupid,' he snapped viciously. 'I know exactly what Mukuro is capable of and I know how to deal with that. Your concerns are not needed, herbivore.' Tsuna awkwardly looked down at the table, not knowing what else he could say.

'I can't help it,' Tsuna muttered finally. 'After what he did when we were younger I'm having trouble trusting him. I _want_ to, but I just can't. I never know when he's going to do something evil.'

'If you can't trust him then why did you release him?' Hibari snapped, quickly growing bored with the conversation that probably wasn't going anywhere.

Tsuna paused. 'Everyone deserves a second chance,' he said after some thought. 'Even Mukuro.'

'Whatever, I don't care,' Hibari said. 'You do what you want with the idiot, send him back to prison for all I care, just stop coming to me every time you need to speak about him.' Hibari's words held little truth in them. In fact, the sentence he said sounded rather forced and Tsuna noticed this. The Tenth sighed and stood, bowing his head politely as he realized that he probably wasn't going to get Hibari to talk anymore.

'Thanks for your time, anyway,' he nodded. He walked slowly out of the room, stopping at the door to say one last thing. 'But if you notice anything off Hibari-san, am I right in thinking that you'll tell us?'

'Hn.'

Tsuna, taking this as a yes, left with a exasperated sigh, leaving Hibari on his own. With no other people left to disturb him. Hibari closed his eyes and set his nearly-finished tea down in front of him. Tsuna was really getting on his last nerve lately with all the visits he deemed necessary. Apparently, since Mukuro was almost always with Hibari they assumed that something was going on. Hibari had no doubt that it was the probably Guardians anxiousness more so than Tsuna's, but he still was annoyed.

Well, Guardians meaning just Gokudera and perhaps Lambo. Ryohei wasn't there when they had met Mukuro so he never really made his acquaintance and had to base his judgment on the word of others, and Yamamoto easily forgave those who wronged him (even Mukuro to an extent). When Mukuro was in the same room as Gokudera Hayato he was watched like prey to a hawk and Lambo was flat out terrified of the Mist Guardian. Hibari knew this because more often than not he had witnessed it.

Still, even though Yamamoto forgave, and Ryohei didn't know anything there still was not a lot of trust when it came to Mukuro, and Mukuro didn't blame them. Hibari had found out that the other Guardians, excluding himself and Chrome, were rather apprehensive about Mukuro going on an assignment on his own. Still, it was a good sign that nobody agreed to Gokudera's plan of following the illusionist all the way to Italy to observe him and what he got up to.

Cracking his eyes open, Hibari stood up. Now that nobody was there the room was unnaturally quiet. Naturally, Hibari blame Mukuro. Ever since the damned illusionist came back into his life things had been twisted around. He had gotten so used to Mukuro and that just wasn't right. Hibari Kyoya wasn't meant to grow accustomed to _anyone_, especially herbivorous idiots who humiliated him when he was sixteen.

Disturbed that he was agitated by the silence in his room he walked away, planning to leave for a little while. Maybe going for a walk would clear his mind.

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**Next chapter will probably contain smut, so for those who dislike that sort of thing I suggest you just skip it~**


	8. Realizations

**Hm...there's just something about this chapter that I don't particularly like. Oh well, it's probably my imagination. :D **

**I really should revise for my upcoming exams, but this fic is just _begging_ to be finished. **

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**Realizations**

Mukuro's return from Italy turned out to be better received than expected. Tsuna couldn't find anything wrong with sending Mukuro away (yet) and was right in thinking that doing the assignment perfectly would help with the lack of trust problem as the Guardians, more so Ryohei and Yamamoto than anyone else, congratulated him on becoming a true Vongola member. That didn't stop the Mist Guardian from smirking and planting an illusion on the two, making them believe that they were lost in space for mistaking him as someone who _wanted _to be in the Vongola. Really, those two could get so gullible sometimes.

Naturally, Mukuro's little trick didn't bode well with everyone else, especially when Yamamoto literally glomped Gokudera when he came back from his trip in 'space'. In fact, it probably just made everyone else go back to staring at him and not trusting him at all. Yamamoto and Ryohei, however, were fine with him. They took it as a joke and moved on. Still, nobody could stop Gokudera marching straight up to Mukuro to threaten him.

That was when he found himself being attacked by a group of snakes that were _very_ real. This, unfortunately, wasn't the best way to convince people to trust the illusionist, but he didn't care. He thought it was funny and that was that. After the episode with Mukuro's Path of Animals, Tsuna had called him to his office. After visiting Hibari the Tenth received some sort of a letter, and seemed to withdraw himself from everyone and when he did mingle with the others he always had a thoughtful, worried look on his face.

When asked about it he shook his head and told them not to worry. Still, the revelation that their beloved boss had something that seemed important on his mind disturbed most people. The fact that upon leaving Tsuna's office Mukuro had the same thoughtful look on his face did nothing for everyone's nerves either. Mukuro _never_ wore that expression unless something big was going on. There was something going on in the Vongola Family, but nobody knew apart from Tsuna, Reborn and Mukuro.

When Chrome asked Mukuro, his reaction was quite similar to Tsuna's. He simply smiled and told her not to worry. Unfortunately, this just seemed to worry the young woman even more.

Upon hearing about Mukuro's return, Hibari didn't know what to do. On one hand, he could go to greet the idiot because he wanted to let off some steam, and sex was the only way to do this as everyone avoided him when he was angry, or he could wait for the illusionist to go to him, which no doubt he would probably do soon.

As he walked out of the room to go to the main Vongola base he told himself that it wasn't because Mukuro had returned. _Obviously_ he was going out because he needed to take a walk. If he bumped into the illusionist then that would be _totally_ coincidental and if Mukuro suggested that they go to the bedroom, then so be it.

OK, so maybe he wanted to see Mukuro a little more than he admitted to himself, but that was simply because he needed something to take his stress out on, and other than fighting sex was the best way to do it. Any other reasons that may be there were totally not true.

'Ah, Kyoya, how nice of you to come and greet me.' Hibari stopped mid-step as he heard the voice of who he was looking for. 'Did you miss me?'

Without turning around to look at Mukuro, he replied. 'No,' he said bitterly, angry at himself for not staying in his room like he originally intended to. 'I want you to die.'

Mukuro pouted teasingly and put a hand to his chest as he came into Hibari's line of vision. 'Oya, that's not very nice. You wound me, you really do,' he said in mock hurt. 'One day I may not come back and then what would you do when you need to let off some steam?'

'Kill a puppy.'

Mukuro paused for a moment. 'My, my, Kyoya, did you make a joke?'

'It's called sarcasm, idiot,' Hibari snapped with a glare.

'Kufufu~ I'm sure it is.' The Cloud Guardian began to walk away and Mukuro strode along beside him, smirking because he knew what was going to happen next. He chuckled to himself and smiled charmingly at any person they passed.

Hibari stopped briefly and turned to scowl at Mukuro. 'Where the hell is your room?' he asked impatiently.

Chuckling, Mukuro gently grabbed Hibari's shoulders and turned him so that he was faced in the opposite direction. 'That way,' he instructed as he began ushering the smaller man forwards. Hibari's eyes narrowed at his mistake, but thought nothing off it. He had never been to Mukuro's room, so he had an excuse.

They came to stop next to a door that was near Chrome's room, and Hibari mentally kicked himself for not working it out on his own. It was _obvious_ that Mukuro would be situated near Chrome! He repressed a sigh and watched as Mukuro keyed in the combination before barging in and removing his blazer while kicking off his shoes.

'I heard you had to go and see Sawada,' Hibari said as he loosened his tie.

Mukuro paused between pulling his boots off and looked up at the Cloud Guardian with a soft, thoughtful smile on his face. 'Are you jealous of the Decimo?' he teased lightly.

Hibari just gave him a blank stare.

'My meeting with Sawada Tsunayoshi is of no importance, Kyoya,' he said simply and much too seriously for someone as playful as Mukuro. Hibari narrowed his eyes but chose not pursue the subject. He couldn't be dealing with listening to whatever was going on with the illusionist, no matter how interested he was. He grunted and pulled his tie off, hanging it over a bedside table

'Hn, whatever,' he muttered. Mukuro's smirk grew and his hand shot out and grabbed Hibari's belt, tugging him forward so that their chests were pressed together. His arms wrapped around the smaller man in some sort of an embrace and lowered his head so that his lips were next to Hibari's ear.

'I missed _you _when I was gone,' he whispered with a short chuckle, 'even if you didn't miss me.' Hibari's head shot up but Mukuro took this opportunity to kiss him. He pressed his lips against Hibari's forcefully, taking full control of the situation. Hibari glared, but did not pull away, deciding to bite the idiot illusionist instead, splitting his bottom lip. Mukuro laughed as he drew apart, and ran his tongue over the blood that dripped from his lip.

Not caring that his mouth was injured, he pushed Hibari to the underused bed where he then straddled him unceremoniously. Once again, Hibari glared but allowed Mukuro to begin pulling at the buttons on his shirt.

'Don't rip it,' he ordered. Mukuro smirked.

'Hm? Like this?' With that, he very purposefully ripped the purple dress shirt that Hibari wore. Sending each button flying away at a moderate speed. 'Really, Kyoya, why couldn't you wear the yukata? That's so much easier to take off!'

'I hate you.'

Chuckling and ignoring the semi-angry man beneath him, Mukuro continued to undress him, not caring at all when Hibari decided to avenge his shirt by ripping Mukuro's and grunting when he didn't get the reaction he hoped for, despite the fact that he knew it wasn't going to come anyway.

With quick fingers, Mukuro quickly undid the belt that his partner wore and pulled it out of the pant loops before throwing it behind him, hearing the metal buckle make contact with the wall as he claimed Hibari's lips with his own once again. Hibari responded and leaned upwards into the kiss while pulling at the tie that held Mukuro's ponytail in place. Indigo hair pooled downwards and hung there as Hibari's hands began to fiddle with the hem of Mukuro's pants, wrenching them down inelegantly.

He raised an eyebrow. 'You're not wearing underwear,' he said intelligently. Mukuro chuckled in amusement and let his fingers dance around Hibari's abdomen.

'How very perceptive of you, Kyoya,' he said. Hibari stared at him, as if he was asking for an explanation. 'I find that wearing underwear when on a plane can be quite uncomfortable.' Hibari rolled his eyes but gasped as he felt Mukuro's wandering hands slip down his boxers to grasp his manhood. He resisted the urge to squirm under Mukuro's touch as he was groped and caressed experimentally.

He bit his lip and clamped shut his eyes as the attention he was getting was making him utterly aroused. It was almost embarrassing how quickly he became erect, but the humiliation was lost on him as he curled his fists into the sheets, panting as Mukuro pumped him.

The sensation of Mukuro's other hand creeping towards his rear made him shiver reluctantly, and as a finger was thrust inside him he let out a low, semi-repressed moan. Mukuro chuckled as he felt himself growing harder and harder just by watching Hibari's face twist in pleasure. A second and third finger joined the first, going in and out to stretch and prepare the man for what was soon to come.

Hibari was just about aware that he was almost at his limit, and Mukuro seemed to know this as he pleasured the smaller man. Smirking, he took the three fingers out of Hibari and stopped working his member, settling to gaze at the Cloud Guardian's flustered form. Red in the face, and still reeling from the hand job, Hibari glared.

'Why have you stopped?' he panted as his hips automatically bucked to try and get Mukuro to move his hand again.

'Hm, you look so adorable right now,' he commented, smiling in satisfaction when Hibari's already reddened face turned a shade darker. He leant down and planted a kiss on his forehead before unceremoniously flipping him over and yanking down his underwear.

'You're just going to leave me like that!' Hibari accused, looking over his shoulder and sending a glare to the illusionist as his erection went neglected. Mukuro smiled again and held out his hand, letting some illusionary lubricant conjure up in it (as all the real lube was in Hibari's room). He applied a generous amount and slicked his arousal, which had become hard as he was pleasuring Hibari. Really, it didn't take a lot to turn Mukuro on when he hadn't had sex for a while, and for him two weeks counted as 'a while'.

'Don't worry, Kyoya,' he reassured. 'I'm not that cruel.' He none to gently gripped Hibari's hips and hissed in satisfaction as he harshly entered him. It took everything in Hibari not to yelp out in pain (because _that_ would be humiliating) as the familiar burning sensation ripped through his lower body. He buried his head in Mukuro's pillow and gripped the sheets, biting his lips until they bled as Mukuro began the task of searching for his prostate. His fingers clenched in the soft fabric while his body quivered in pain, but also in pleasure because Mukuro had leant forward and once again began pumping his hand up and down along Hibari's shaft.

Unwittingly, he let out a low moan as a firework of pleasure burst through him, not at all caring that his ass was in the air and was currently being plowed into by the man who always seemed to be there at his weak moments. He groaned again as Mukuro changed their positions, flipping him over so that they were facing each other.

Mukuro's flustered but smiling face was gazing at him when he managed to open his eyes. His long hair spilt down past his shoulders and brushed along Hibari's stomach, tickling it slightly as the hair swayed with each thrust. Panting breathlessly, Hibari curled his fists into the sheets and bit back a loud moan as he felt himself reaching his limit. The bed covers no longer served well as something to grip as he had accidentally torn a hole in them with his blunt nails, so instead his fingers raked down Mukuro's arms which left fiery red fingernail marks that would surely leave a mark in the morning. Hibari did this often though, so Mukuro never did complain.

Hibari probably saw the marks as revenge for the hickey that took forever to heal.

He glared upwards at the pineapple head, but the reason for doing so forgotten as a particularly amazing wave of pleasure washed over him. His body tensed and quivered and he shut his eyes as he came violently. He threw his head back and cringed in satisfaction as he let Mukuro finish up.

With one final thrust and deep moan, Mukuro reached his limit. He collapsed inelegantly on top of the Cloud Guardian and chuckled breathily. It took him a good few minutes before he could speak again.

'What a wonderful way to be welcomed back to Japan,' he laughed, rolling off of Hibari and stretching his body out, hearing his joints pop in satisfaction. Hibari grunted and turned onto his stomach, still too out of breath to say anything. Mukuro chuckled, and rolled to face the Cloud Guardian, leaning on the palm of his hand. He rested the other hand on Hibari's lower back, which was no doubt in pain from their activities.

'Get off,' he muttered as he regained the ability to speak.

Mukuro ignored him. 'Are you OK?' he asked with a smirk. Hibari's eyes snapped towards him, but otherwise he didn't move.

'I'm fine, leave me alone,' he said as he buried his face into one of Mukuro's pillows, fully intending to go to sleep.

That was when he realized that something was wrong. Why was he staying in Mukuro's room? Usually, when they did it in Hibari's room he would kick the illusionist out straight away unless he fell asleep before he could so. So wasn't it a little hypocritical of him to stay? Shouldn't he have left as soon as he regained the feeling in his legs?

It didn't seem that Mukuro minded much, as he planted a chaste kiss on Hibari's bare shoulder and moved his hand so that it was wrapped around his waist. Hibari told himself that he didn't complain or wiggle away because he was tired, but was he really bothered about the proximity? Mukuro let out a contended sigh, and with his free hand pulled the covers over them both, chuckling when he fingered the rips in the fabric.

Hibari glared at the illusionist, who had shut his eyes and was relaxing peacefully. This was wrong. He shouldn't still be there. He should have left immediately, like he originally intended to. Hibari couldn't understand why he felt so, for lack of better word, _comfortable_ being half-asleep in Mukuro's arms.

It wa strangely perplexing. Hibari _hated_ people touching him, but there he was being _cuddled_ (of all things) by the one man he vowed to kill no matter what and he…didn't mind…

His eyes widened slightly as he came to this disturbing realization.

'If you keep staring at me, Kyoya,' Mukuro said without opening his eyes, 'I might start to think that you actually _like _me.' Hibari scoffed and turned his head away from Mukuro, his face flushing slightly at the fact that he had been caught.

Great, _now_ he was getting embarrassed over stupid things.

He repressed a sigh as he grew more and more comfortable, only making him want to stay rather than leave like he thought he wanted. The situation in general confused him. He thought that this thing with Mukuro was nothing but fighting and sex but, if his unwillingness to leave the room while he was in Mukuro's arms said anything, it seemed that there was more to it than what he had originally thought.

The revelation hit him hard, and Hibari decided that if he didn't want to be involved with Mukuro like that he had to get out of their 'relationship' before he was sucked in.

He ignored the slight feeling of disappointment that washed over him.

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**What _is_ it that makes me dislike this chapter? Hm... I guess I'm just paranoid. Oh well. Next chapter _should_ be up sometime this week, but I wouldn't hold me to that. I'm not very reliable when it comes to, well, most things actually. **


	9. Avoidance

**Ah, finally got the next chapter up! School's officially finished for me now, so I should be updating more regularly.**

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Avoidance **

Since he came back to Japan from his assignment, Mukuro was very happy, but certainly not surprised to hear that Tsuna had in fact kept his word and allowed him to walk about on his own without someone watching over him. Going outside still wasn't that much of an option, but his Kokuyo Gang were finally permitted to enter the base and see their much loved master. In fact, Mukuro was expecting them to come very soon, as Ken would most likely drag Chikusa there as soon as he found out that he was actually allowed.

However, despite the good news something was bothering him. Hibari was avoiding him, and he would have liked to know why. After the night they spent together when he had returned from Italy, Hibari hadn't spoken a word to him, and that was just two days ago. Mukuro didn't know what happened - which was quite the rarity for someone like him.

At first he was confused, as every time he went to Hibari's room like he usually did the Cloud Guardian would not be there. Then, however, he figured it out. It was all too obvious, because as soon as Mukuro entered the briefing room Hibari had stood up and left, just like that. It certainly didn't help with the whole trust issue as most of the other Guardians were there too, but Mukuro wasn't particularly too bothered about that.

'Mukuro-sama?' Chrome said, furrowing her brows. 'Are you alright?' Mukuro looked at the young woman, and smiled as he realized that she had been talking to him for a while now.

'Hm? Yes, I'm fine, my dear,' he assured, although he knew that Chrome knew better. They had shared the same body numerous times, so she knew when he was lying. Well, a lot of the time anyway. Mukuro smiled amiably at her, only to receive a worried look in return. He sighed and put his hand in hers, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

'Ever since you came back from Italy and had that meeting with Boss there's been something on your mind,' she said in a soft voice, the worry evident in her features.

Mukuro sighed again and looked away in thought, letting his thumb absently stroke Chrome's hand. 'There is something on my mind,' he admitted, not wanting to lie to her, 'but there are certain reasons why I must refuse to tell you.' Chrome tilted her head and studied her master's face in concern.

'Why? What can't you tell me?'

The illusionist smiled at the young woman and shook his head. 'Nothing that I would want you to worry yourself over, my cute little Chrome,' Mukuro chuckled, giving her hand a pat. Chrome pursed her lips at his unwillingness to say anything, but if he didn't want to tell her then it was probably for the best, right? She lowered her head but kept her grip on Mukuro's hand.

Sighing, she let a faint frown creep up on her face. She supposed that whatever Mukuro was keeping to himself had nothing to do with her, no matter how important it seemed. Still, it did not waver the curiosity and concern that she felt regarding the subject. She tried again.

'Is this about Hibari-san?' she asked tentatively. Being almost one with Mukuro, she had found out about his and Hibari's affair almost as soon as it happened, but had kept it to herself. No doubt that Mukuro was completely aware that she knew this, but she decided that maybe he wanted to keep it quiet.

Mukuro raised a brow, but his smile stayed firmly in place. 'No,' he said softly. Well, it wasn't exactly a lie. Hibari _had_ been on his mind a lot lately, but there was something else which involved a certain letter that Tsuna got on the day that Mukuro came back from Italy. The situation with Hibari was just the cherry on top, so to speak, of everything that was going wrong. It didn't matter, since Mukuro was sure that he could regain control over every single problem that had occurred.

Chrome hummed slightly, but nodded all the same. 'Whatever it is, Mukuro-sama,' she said quietly, 'please sort it out soon. Both you and the Boss have been acting strangely, and I can't help but worry.' Mukuro blinked as Chrome tightened her grip on his hand, but he let a warm smile cross his lips.

'I don't want you to be concerned, Chrome,' he said truthfully. 'Everything will be fine.' That was apparently all he needed to say to make the young woman feel better. She smiled a small, but genuine smile as she nodded - totally trusting his words.

Their moment, however, was ruined as a very loud and excited Ken burst through the door. 'Mukuro-san!' he exclaimed, almost glomping the illusionist. 'Finally, pyon!'

Chikusa followed shortly, and nodded his acknowledgment to Mukuro, though everyone could see the gleam in his eye, which just showed how happy he was to see Mukuro in the flesh, no matter how indifferent he seemed.

Ken looked around Chrome's room warily, as if he suspected the Vongola of setting up surveillance or something. He was the one who protested the most over Chrome's move to the base, _trying_ to be discrete about it, but everyone could tell that he didn't want the woman to be too far away.

After glaring around the room, he turned his attention to Mukuro. 'How have these idiots been treating you, Mukuro-san? You want me to kill them, pyon?'

Mukuro chuckled and shook his head, knowing that Ken didn't stand a chance against the Vongola. 'No, of course not, they treat me very well, Ken,' he laughed.

'You'll get yourself killed anyway,' Chikusa said blandly.

'Shut it, Kaki-pi, you're going to get killed!'

'I wasn't the one who asked to assassinate the whole Vongola.' Ken glared at the taller man and crossed his arms childishly, sticking his tongue out at the same time. He looked back at Mukuro, and his eyes widened dramatically, almost comically.

'Mukuro-san, you're arms, pyon!'

Mukuro blinked and looked down to see what on Earth the dog was on about. Upon looking, his eyes softened considerably. There he saw the numerous scratch and fingernail marks that Hibari had unwittingly made when they slept together. He sighed mentally and looked up again to see Chrome blushing and looking away, knowing what they were.

'You get into a fight, Mukuro-san?' he exclaimed, snatching Mukuro's left arm and bringing up to his eyelevel to inspect it. 'Who was it? I'll kill 'em! I knew it was a bad idea to let you and the stupid woman stay here!'

'Kufufu~'

Ken continued. 'Was it the one with the bombs, pyon? No, it was that stupid prefect, wasn't it? Where is he? I'll kill him!' This time Mukuro didn't just chuckle, he laughed outright at the image of Ken trying to go up against Hibari. The man would get pummeled for just _being_ there, he wouldn't even have the chance to lay a claw on the ex-prefect.

Chikusa sighed. 'Ken, don't you think Mukuro-sama would have already taken care of the person who did this?' he asked indifferently.

'Oh yes, I've taken care of him,' Mukuro chuckled in a low voice. Chrome's blush intensified and she lowered her head to hide her cheeks with her hair. Ken nodded, but kept on glaring at around him, as if something was going to pop out and attack them. He was such a protective subordinate.

'And what's with you, stupid woman?' Ken snapped at Chrome. 'You haven't said anything since we came here. You look like you're hiding something!' For someone so clueless, it was amazing how much Ken could figure out accidentally.

'N-nothing, I'm hiding nothing,' Chrome claimed as Mukuro watched the scene in amusement. His eyes, however, kept drifting down to his arm, where the many red scratches were. It seemed that he didn't see Hibari as a toy, like he saw so many other people. He smiled slightly and turned to his subordinates.

'I have some business I need to attend to,' he said, making the three stop what they were doing and cast their attention to him.

'You're leaving?' Chikusa said.

'Hm, I am,' Mukuro nodded. 'I trust you'll be staying at the base for a while?'

Ken nodded eagerly. 'Yeah, that Sawada guy let us have a room,' he confirmed. 'He said we could stay as long as we need.'

'Ah, good, then I'll be going.' Mukuro turned to the door to take his leave. 'I'll be back later, so why don't you two get settled in. I'm sure that you haven't even had chance to eat yet, am I right?'

Just as Ken was about to complain, his stomach let out a low rumble, making Chrome giggle. He rubbed the back of his head awkwardly with one hand and held his abdomen with the other. 'Well, maybe, pyon.'

'Kufufu, it's settled then,' Mukuro said as he was half way out the room. 'Chrome, will you be so kind as to take these two and help them settle in?'

Chrome nodded, quite aware of where Mukuro was going. 'Yes, Mukuro-sama.'

He lifted his hand in a short wave as he walked down the corridor, not turning around to see his subordinates as he left. Now, all he wanted to do was sort things out with Hibari, despite the fact that he didn't actually know what he did wrong.

He chuckled as he walked. Not knowing something was not something he was entirely used too, but he would fix that. He would find out what Hibari was avoiding him for and then he would set it right. It was amazing what he would do for that Skylark. His chuckle turned into a rather mad laugh as he walked, earning himself some strange looks from random passersby. Apart from Chrome (and maybe Ken and Chikusa) Mukuro hadn't ever really cared for anyone, but then came Hibari.

So, now that he had established that he liked Hibari a little more than he was supposed to, he managed to stop his insane laughter, consequentially stopping the disturbed looks from people. He kept his smirk large as he strode down the route he usually took when visiting the cloud Guardian.

Soon, he reached the sliding door that led to Hibari's place next to the Vongola base, and he opened it and walked in, noticing the shocked stares from Kusakabe and Hibari.

Mukuro smiled and stayed by the door, crossing his arms over his chest to say that he wasn't going anywhere. Hibari sighed and stood up.

'You've been avoiding me,' Mukuro said simply, straight to the point. He knew how much Hibari hated beating around the bush.

Not seeing a reason to deny it, Hibari replied. 'Yes, I have.'

'May I ask why?'

'No,' Hibari glared, totally not wanting to see Mukuro at the moment.

'And why not?'

'I don't need a reason,' he said. He clenched his fists as Mukuro stared at him and, not wanting to be with him for too long, he tried to walk away. The door was too far though, as Mukuro grabbed his arm before he could storm out of the room. Hibari stopped, but did not turn to look at the illusionist.

'You can't avoid me forever, Kyoya,' he said. Hibari faltered but refused to let his gaze meet Mukuro's. He pulled his arm forcefully away from the illusionist and held on to it as if it had been burnt.

'I can do whatever I please, herbivore,' he snapped. He could hear Mukuro let out a soft sigh, but still he didn't turn to look. Instead, he simply walked away, silently declaring their short conversation to be over. Mukuro didn't chase him, nor did he call his out name. He just stood there and watched him go. Besides, Hibari would just refuse to cooperate and not tell him what he wanted to know anyway, so Mukuro had to approach the subject differently.

The option to go into his head was always there, but that would just make Hibari even more annoyed at him.

Kusakabe stared at where Hibari had walked, shock registered on his face. He turned to Mukuro. 'What have you do to Kyo-san?' he accused.

Mukuro looked at him. 'Hm?'

'He's been acting strangely ever since you came back from Italy. What have you done to him?'

The illusionist chuckled softly and once again cast his gaze to where Hibari had left. 'I really don't know.'

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**Meh, not a lot going on in that chapter. Next update will reveal what the meeting that Tsuna and Mukuro had when he came back from Italy was all about~ I'll try to post it as soon as possible.**


	10. Talking with Tsuna

**Ahh, shoot me now! I'm so sorry, my dears! So much for regular updates, huh. And I don't even have a decent excuse to give you. I suppose I could spin you all some sort of wacky tale as my reason for being a douche-bag and not updating, but my imagination's drawn to a blank after I rushed this chapter. I'm not even sure if I'm happy with this chapter anyway. Eh, oh well. I'll get over it. **

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Talking with Tsuna**

After the pathetically short confrontation with Hibari, Mukuro left the base. Sure, he wasn't actually permitted to do so, but the many locks and defenses that kept the exits shut were easily bypassed. Actually, it was almost laughable on how simple the locks were. Mukuro managed to get out without any problems, and let himself wander around Namimori aimlessly. Nobody caught him, but he was sure that Tsuna would notice that he was missing sooner or later and send someone to collect him.

Until then, he decided, he would find somewhere to sit and think. And what better than the park bench in Namimori park. Smiling, he walked lazily down the path leading to the park, noting to himself that the weather was unusually cold for summer. Leaves whipped round his ankles in the wind, and his hair was flying everywhere, getting into his eyes every now and again. Not bothered or put off by the fact that he was almost being blinded by his own hair, he continued to walk.

This was the first time he had been out of the base for his own purposes, instead of being sent there by someone else and he intended to make the most of it. He warmed himself with a cup of coffee, which he bought from some café he passed by during his walk. The money he used wasn't actually real, but the people at the café would get over it. He sipped at the drink somewhat elegantly, as he sat himself down on the bench at the park. Children had abandoned the swing set, the slides and all the things that were playable to go to school, so Mukuro was alone - to which he was quite grateful for.

He shut his eyes and leaned against the bench comfortably, placing the half finished coffee to one side. Even he had to get away from everything once in a while, so then seemed the perfect moment for him to spend time alone.

Or it would have been had Tsuna not followed him.

'I came out here intending to be alone, Sawada Tsunayoshi,' he called out, tilting his head and staring lazily towards a tree. Tsuna sheepishly came out from behind it and approached, sitting down in the offered space after Mukuro moved his cup off coffee out of the way.

'There really is no point in trying to be discrete around you, is there?' he said, rubbing the back of his head as his face slightly heated up at the embarrassment of being caught spying behind a tree. It wasn't exactly the most boss-like thing he had ever done.

'Kufufu, no, I don't believe there is.'

'Why did you leave the base, Mukuro?' asked the Tenth, staring pointedly at the illusionist. Mukuro sighed and turned his lazy gaze to the Vongola, raising a brow slightly.

'I would have thought that you of all people would have known,' he said in a somewhat bored tone. Tsuna looked down at his hands, a soft, worried expression on his face.

'I'm sorry,' he apologized. 'I really am.'

'Kufufu,' laughed the illusionist. 'There's no need for apology, Sawada Tsunayoshi. I don't blame you any more than I blame anyone else.' Tsuna furrowed his brows and bit his lip as he stared at Mukuro.

'Do you…do you want to talk about it,' he asked awkwardly. Mukuro blinked and smirked at how uncomfortable Tsuna was. The young Vongola never really did settle well when the illusionist was about.

'And why would I want to speak about it?' he asked.

Tsuna once again rubbed the back of the head. 'Because ever since I showed you the letter you've been acting differently. It's not really that noticeable, but there's just something that I can't place and I think that it's been bugging you.'

'Naturally I am upset by the news, but there is nothing I can do, is there?' Tsuna still looked a little uneasy, so Mukuro sighed and shook his head before continuing. 'I don't blame you. Even if I wanted to I wouldn't, because Chrome seems to accept you as her boss and her friend and if I put all the blame on you she would no doubt never look at you the same way. I don't want to do that to her.'

Tsuna now looked like he wanted to cry. 'It's not confirmed yet, Mukuro. I can still find a way to sort this out.'

Once again Mukuro sighed. 'Listen, young Vongola,' he said offhandedly, 'I do know of the consequences should you _not_ send me back, and I know that you do not want that.'

Tsuna visibly flinched as it was said out loud. They were talking about the letter he had received two days ago. It was from an allied Family, a strong and formidable one and the contents of it made Tsuna want to quit his job as the boss.

'The choice to send me back to Vendice is yours and yours alone. I will not think any different of you no matter what you choose.'

Vendice. The one place that Tsuna didn't want to hear from ever again. The letter was a warning, which was the best way to explain it. And it was about Mukuro. Apparently, the other Families in the Mafia world just didn't feel safe with Mukuro being free, having heard or experienced his reputation and had threatened to start a Mafia war if the illusionist was not back in the prison. Naturally, Tsuna was prepared to face a fight, but then more letters came from more Families, allied or otherwise, each one wanting Mukuro back in Vendice.

Mukuro had taken it surprisingly well.

'I don't want to send you back, Mukuro,' he sighed unhappily. 'I can't do that to Chrome.'

Mukuro laughed. 'Hm, Chrome's a big girl,' he said. 'Even so, no matter what you decide I will not be going back to that prison anyway. I simply refuse.'

'If the decision to send you back is made, then you will have to cooperate.'

'I refuse.'

Tsuna sighed. 'And if that doesn't work out?'

'Vongola,' Mukuro addressed, turning to him with a dangerous glint in his eyes, 'if I do get send back to Vendice, then I still have many aces up my sleeve. That prison isn't as impregnable as you believe it too be. I seem to recall that ten years ago, you and you Guardians, including my dear Chrome, took a little trip into the future.'

'How did you know that?' Tsuna quickly said.

Mukuro ignored him. 'And tell me, Sawada Tsunayoshi, what did I manage to achieve in that certain future?'

'You managed to escape,' Tsuna sighed. 'But how do you know that? That future never happened.'

'Well, I would have thought that was obvious,' he chuckled. 'Chrome cannot keep things from me for long. I know all about this Byakuran person, and about the fight you and your Guardian's took part in.' He pressed a finger to his lips in thought. 'I would have liked to have met this Byakuran that Chrome told me about. If he was as she says he was, then we would have made great friends.'

Tsuna visibly paled at the thought of Mukuro and Byakuran being friends. _That_ would be trouble.

'Hm, then again Chrome mentioned something about a very strong power that even I had trouble with~ Kufufu, now why do you look so worried?'

'I'm so glad that you haven't met Byakuran in this future,' he accidentally said aloud.

'Kufufu,' Mukuro chuckled. 'Would it really be that bad? Hm, anyway, we're going off topic. I was implying that if I could break out of the prison in that particular future, then surely I could also do it in this one. I'm assuming that you are aware that Fran is my apprentice?'

'Yeah, I found that out,' Tsuna said. 'He helped you during the fight with Byakuran.'

'Exactly, but you must be aware Vongola,' Mukuro smiled, 'Fran is not the only illusionist I have come across. I do have a lot more subordinates than you think.'

'So no matter what happens, you will always have something prepared.' It was more of a statement than a question.

Mukuro took a sip of his coffee, and leant back on the bench as he narrowed his eyes towards the play park in front of them. 'Vendice do not have the tools to hold me in captivity successfully anymore, I have already spent enough time in that place.'

'I understand,' Tsuna muttered, moving his stare away from Mukuro, 'but even if I do choose to send you back, and you leave forcefully you just be an escapee again - a convict, a criminal!'

'Oh? And since when has that ever put me off before?'

Tsuna snapped his gaze back to the illusionist. 'And what about Hibari-san? I don't know exactly what he means to you, but I'm sure that you like him a lot. If you become a Vendicare criminal again then chances are that you won't be able to see him.'

Mukuro fell quiet, and Tsuna took this as a sign to shut up. He scrutinized Mukuro's features warily, wondering if he had gone too far as the illusionist sighed and fingered the rim of the now empty cup in thought.

'Hibari Kyoya,' he mused, putting a finger to his lips. 'Such an predictable, yet unpredictable person. Even if I once again became an escapee I doubt that I would never see him again.'

Tsuna sighed, realizing that he would not make Mukuro change his mind. Still, it was comforting to know that even if he sent the illusionist back to Vendice he would not be blamed for it. After all, it was a decision that was supposed to benefit the whole Vongola, and not just one of them.

'You are a very stubborn person,' he breathed uselessly, pursing his lips slightly.

'As I've been told many times, Sawada Tsunayoshi,' he chuckled.

Tsuna looked at him, shaking his head slightly. 'How do you do it, Mukuro? How do you stay so calm when you know that there's a big chance that I'll be forced to send you back to Vendicare?'

'I don't see the point in worrying over something that is yet to come,' he explained offhandedly. 'I'll deal with Vendice when and if I'm ever placed in the situation of being sent back.'

'Still, you seem a little…off.'

Mukuro smiled, but said no more as he stood up too leave. He did not intend to share everything with Tsuna, especially his little dilemma with Hibari. He would sort that out sooner or later, once he let the Cloud Guardian cool down a little. He would have to corner Hibari if he wanted to know the reason for being avoided. Sure it may lead to a fight, and maybe it would make Hibari even more angry with him, but at least he'd know what was going on.

For some reason, Mukuro didn't want to resort to using his abilities to force the reason out of him.

He grinned amiably at Tsuna as stood up, throwing his empty coffee cup into a nearby trashcan.

'I'll be fine,' he claimed, not turning to look at the Tenth. 'I don't need sympathy. Worry about your decision, not about me.'

'Whichever decision I make will be the wrong one,' Tsuna said quietly. 'On the one hand I could send you back, but then you'll escape and stir up a havoc _and_ I don't want Chrome to get depressed, while on the other I could _not_ send you back and start up a huge mafia war, like the other Families threatened. I don't know what to do.'

Tsuna looked stressed and overworked when Mukuro finally turned to him. 'You do whatever you think is best, Sawada Tsunayoshi,' he said simply, shrugging slightly. 'Whatever you pick will end up with me not being imprisoned, I guarantee it.'

'You're really important to the Vongola, whether you like it or not,' Tsuna sighed. 'So if I send you back and you escape then you will become a criminal - a lost cause and we would not be able to use you.'

'Kufufu~' Mukuro chuckled. 'Whatever gave you that idea? You would still have Chrome, would you not? Chrome and I are one.'

'It's not the same. Chrome can't handle some of the things you see. I don't know exactly how much she witnesses when you take over her body, Mukuro, but I'm sure she sees some, if not all of it.'

The illusionist narrowed his eyes. 'Chrome is not as fragile as you think.'

'But she is a woman!' Tsuna exclaimed. 'I don't want to expose her to something like that!'

Mukuro's brow twitched, but his smirk stayed steady. 'You don't want to expose her? My dear Chrome has seen so much worse than what you are talking about, Sawada Tsunayoshi,' he said in a steady, dangerous tone. 'As I said, she and I are one and I cannot hide my memories all of the time. If I posses her and then loose my energy somehow, the wall between her thoughts and my own is usually broken down. Do you know how many times I have seen her cry because I was too weak to hold up the barrier between her and my past?'

'Barrier?' Tsuna said warily.

'My Chrome is strong, Vongola,' Mukuro continued, smiling dangerously at him. 'You may not believe it, with the way she acts, and she may dislike violence and things like that but she is strong.' He faltered slightly. 'No one but her could know most of my memories and remain loyal.'

Tsuna furrowed his brow. 'Muku-'

'But enough of that,' Mukuro cut off, as if he realized that he was saying too much. He grinned and began to walk away, listening to Tsuna jog to catch up with him. 'We should get back. I'm sure people have noticed our absence and are getting suspicious by now. I wouldn't want Gokudera Hayato trying to blow me up again for trying to steal your body. Really, he never does learn.'

Tsuna laughed nervously and fell into step beside the illusionist, still reeling from the slightly out of character speech that Mukuro had spilt. It wasn't like him to say things like that. Mukuro was the type of man who said so much, yet gave away so little, but what he had just said was totally different. Well, at least now any doubts about Mukuro's caring affection for Chrome were officially gone. Still, it was strange that Mukuro would say so much about what he has been through, even if it was only a sentence or two.

Despite the situation, Tsuna felt that he could only just understand why Mukuro was the way he was a little better now.

The walked back in somewhat uncomfortable silence - well, uncomfortable for Tsuna anyway. Mukuro looked completely content, which was actually quite worrying considering what he may have to go through. Sighing, Tsuna shook his head.

Sometimes he just hated being the boss.

* * *

**Ah, so we figure out what was in the letter that Tsuna got! I hope they're both in character. :D**

**Anyhow, I'm going to warn you all in advance this time. Due to my extraordinary talent at procrastinating I really don't know when I'll update. However, even if it takes _forever_ I will eventually post a new chapter. I refuse to let my story go unfinished so no matter how long it takes I will eventually finish it. **


	11. Confessions

**Once upon a time, there was a young fanfiction author who kept to a schedule when posting updates. Then one day, she forgot to keep to the schedule, and ever since she has been updating randomly. Now, all of her readers are kept waiting, which makes the fanfiction author feel bad. Despite this, she continues to be a bitch because she's really bad at updating. The end.**

**OK, you all totally have the right to pelt me with bricks or something. It's been what? Three or four weeks since my last update? *bows head in apology* FORGIVE ME!**

**Anyway, I'm back with my next chapter, and I don't think I could have made it anymore cheesy if I tried. Even the chapter title is lame. XD**

**

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Confessions**

After returning to the base with Tsuna, Mukuro went straight to his room. He wasn't really one to go in there a lot, so it was rather underused. In fact, the last time he had been in his room was when he was with Hibari after he came back from Italy. He didn't know why he disliked staying there, he just didn't. It didn't particularly matter, since he didn't sleep a lot (he really thought that it was a waste of time) but now with nowhere to go, his room was his only option.

Well, that or go and see Hibari again.

He stopped mid-step and thought about it. No doubt he still wouldn't want to explain anything, but if he was being honest with himself then Mukuro figured that Hibari would_ never_ want to talk. That meant that the illusionist could either talk his way into finding things out, or simply invade Hibari's mind. Hopefully, he thought to himself, it wouldn't resort to the second option. He really didn't want to give Hibari more reasons to avoid him. Slowly, he automatically turned around to head for wherever Hibari was. He wouldn't be in his room, since he had deserted that the last time Mukuro tried to talk to him, which meant he was either in Namimori or wandering around the Vongola base aimlessly.

Mukuro was not the type of person to second guess himself, so he was rather surprised when he started to think that it was a bad idea. The option of visiting Chrome, Ken and Chikusa (who had all but invaded half of the Vongola base) was wide open and Mukuro was shocked to realize the he was temped to take it. Instead, he shook his thoughts out of his head and marched on. He wanted to sort things out with Hibari. Or, at the very least, find out what he had done wrong. Humming thoughtfully, he passed the suspicious and friendly gazes of Gokudera and Yamamoto respectively. Yamamoto was the one who began to (sort of) trust him the soonest out of all the Guardians, simply because of his friendly personality. Mukuro decided that that type of thinking would get him killed quicker. As far as he was concerned, Gokudera was right not to trust him. He, by most people's standards, was unstable and could betray them at any minute. Mukuro never denied nor confirmed this fact.

'Stay away from the Tenth,' Gokudera snapped as Mukuro walked by. It seemed that he had somehow discovered about the talk between Tsuna and Mukuro only moments earlier - which just made Mukuro wonder how much time Gokudera dedicated to stalking the Vongola Tenth. In return for the comment, Mukuro simply smiled amiably. To anyone who didn't know him they would probably have found it charming, but Gokudera knew better. Mukuro laughed internally as he thought of how Tsuna's right hand man would be on his guard all night looking for illusions that would never come.

Putting Gokudera's suspicions aside, Mukuro was surprised at himself for being so reluctant to confront Hibari. He was usually the type of person to go through with something easily almost as soon as he had thought of it, so why was this so different? He smiled bitterly to himself. He knew the reason; he just didn't want to admit it to himself. Shrugging and figuring that admittance was much better than bottling it up, he decided to accept it and move on. He was getting attached to Hibari. Well, 'getting' was a little bit wrong. It was more like he was already hopelessly in love with the Cloud Guardian. It was a foreign feeling, since the only love he ever felt was platonic - and that was specially reserved for his dear Chrome. Still, he had possessed many people who had been in love before, so he knew that it was love he was feeling for Hibari. He chuckled at the irony of it all. Hibari Kyoya, the person who he had defeated when he was fifteen, and the person who had vowed to get revenge for the defeat.

He supposed that, faced with the possibility of being sent back to Vendice, growing attached to Hibari wasn't exactly the wisest thing to do, but Mukuro never really bothered about the little things like that. If he was in love with Hibari, then he was in love with Hibari - Vendicare or not.

The one place in the Vongola he would be, apart from his own room, would be the library. Hibari was fond of books and on more than one occasion Mukuro had found him there. It was the one place in the whole Vongola that both of them could tolerate, simply because hardly anyone went there. Mukuro found himself outside of the door to the library in a matter of minutes, and was shocked to find that he was hesitating. This was so unlike him. It wasn't as if he was nervous, since he hadn't gotten nervous in a _long_ time (if he didn't possess people then he probably would have forgotten what being nervous actually felt like) but there was something that just made him hesitate going in to talk with Hibari. Eventually, after a moment of mentally arguing with himself, he opened the door and strode in with a small grin on his face. Like he had predicted, Hibari was there, as was Kusakabe.

'Tetsuya, would you mind leave Kyoya and I alone for a moment?' Mukuro asked, not moving his gaze from Hibari. Hibari looked up with a half-hearted glare and closed the book he was read before standing up. 'Don't try to run away Kyoya. I want to speak with you.'

'I'm not running away, idiot,' Hibari snapped. He put his book down on the table and turned to Kusakabe. 'Leave,' he ordered.

'But Kyo-san-'

'_Leave_. Now.' Kusakabe nodded quickly and bowed before rushing out of the room, but not before sending a wary glance to Mukuro. Now that they were alone, Mukuro closed the door and stared at Hibari, as if he was waiting for him to say something first. Hibari crossed his arms and kept his glare. Suddenly, Mukuro chuckled and sat down on the table, looking around the bookshelves casually.

'I would like to know why you've been avoiding me.' It was issued more like an order than a statement, and as soon as Mukuro said it he knew that it wouldn't work in the way he wanted. Hibari's glare deepened as Mukuro lazily turned towards him to wait for his reaction.

'That's none of your business, herbivore,' he barked.

'Ah, but Kyoya, it is my business,' Mukuro countered slowly. Hibari's scowl lessoned for one split second, before it came back ten times worse. Like always, Mukuro was not affected. He held Hibari's stare and waited for a reply. The option to delve into his mind was becoming more and more tempting, but that wouldn't bode well with Hibari. The Cloud Guardian would just find more reasons to avoid him if he used his own special way to find out what was wrong. All Mukuro had left to depend on was his charm, and Hibari wasn't the type of person to fall for something like that.

Hibari stayed quiet as Mukuro stared at him. Finally however, he spoke. 'I don't want to tell yo-'

Cutting off Hibari wasn't the brightest thing for someone to do, especially is they valued their life. However, Mukuro was not the type of person to take little things like that into consideration. If he wanted to cut off Hibari while he was talking, then he'll damn well cut Hibari off. It was just the way he was, and no amount of death threats, 'I'll bite you to death's' or glares would ever change that. It didn't stop Hibari from being surprised when Mukuro interrupted him mid-word though.

'Kyoya, listen,' he said firmly. 'You're going to have to tell me eventually if you want me to leave you alone. I'm just going to keep coming back if you continue to refuse, and I suppose that you wouldn't want that, hm?'

'Who are you to tell me what to do?' Hibari snapped. 'I'll do whatever I please, herbivore, and if I don't want to tell you then I won't.'

'It's settled then,' Mukuro said with more ferocity than he intended. 'I'll come to see you every single chance I get to try and talk you into telling me. It will happen eventually, Kyoya.'

Violence was Hibari's knee-jerk reaction to whoever dared to snap at him, so when he threw his book at Mukuro's face it was expected and dodged. The Cloud Guardian was almost shaking in anger as he glared at Mukuro. It was like that time in Kokuyo Land all those years ago with the sakura, except this time the fight wasn't physical. Mukuro could see that he was wearing Hibari down, but it came at a price. Hibari was bound to explode sooner or later, and when he got angry it would be even harder to try and find out what he wanted.

'You want to know why I'm avoiding you, idiot?' Hibari snapped. 'Well, I'm not telling you. I just want it all to be over, OK? Whatever it is that's going on between us, I want it _gone_. I don't want it anymore.'

Mukuro actually fell silent at this. His smile had dropped and he looked more thoughtful than upset. He focused his eyes anywhere but at Hibari as he ran those words through his mind again. Silence enveloped them, and only the sound of Hibari's hard breathing was heard. It was as if he was holding himself back from attacking the illusionist, which was a rare thing to do. He pursed his lips and watched Mukuro carefully, deliberately ignoring the air of disappointment that had entered the room. Eventually, he was shocked still when Mukuro's creepy 'kufufu's' began slowly coming out - quietly at first, but gradually growing louder. It was as if whatever was keeping Mukuro even the slightest bit sane had finally left him.

'Oh Kyoya,' Mukuro said, standing up from the table he was sat at. He approached Hibari, who took a step back. 'That's not true though, is it?'

Hibari glared up at the noticeably taller Guardian, but refused to run away. He didn't know if it was habit that made him kiss Mukuro back, or if he actually wanted to, but he did it anyway. Mukuro's lips descended on his own and he instinctively kissed back, as if he was ignorant to what he himself had just said moments ago. Then, all too soon, it came rushing back to him. He pushed Mukuro away violently and glared at him with as much ferocity as he could.

'That's exactly why I want it to end?'

Mukuro was still smiling, as if he had found out a terrible secret. 'Hm? And why's that?'

'Because I don't want to get attached to you!'

The words hung in the air like a curtain of tension, and Mukuro's smile softened slightly at the confession. Hibari wasn't the type to let things slip, but when he did he wasn't like those idiot herbivores that immediately tried to cover it all up. Instead, his anger grew and he threw another book at Mukuro, who caught it with ease and placed it down on the table. If the atmosphere wasn't so serious, then Mukuro would have joked about dealing with a child but even he knew when things like that were inappropriate. Hibari's glare didn't waver, and instead of stopping, he decided to let it all out. He had already unintentionally told Mukuro why he was avoiding him, so why not elaborate?

'I don't want to sleep with you if it means feeling things I'm not meant to feel,' he snapped quietly. Mukuro stayed silent - no longer smiling as Hibari continued to mutter. 'You just _had_ to weasel your way into my life, didn't you? Why did you have to make an impact? I don't understand why you chose me to be your toy. Is it because I amuse you? Well, I don't care anymore, herbivore. I just want you out of my life. I want you to leave me alone, like I used to be.'

Mukuro stayed eerily quiet for the longest time, before he smiled bitterly. 'You think that you're my toy?' he said slowly. 'Kufufu, what makes you think that?'

Hibari punched the table, breaking it, and ground his teeth. 'Don't _fuck_ with me, Mukuro,' he almost yelled. Mukuro raised a brow at the curse word, but said nothing, even though he was perhaps the first person to get Hibari Kyoya to swear. 'Everything to you is a toy. You find gullible herbivores and you use them. I'm not a herbivore, and you're not going to use me anymore.'

'Has it ever occurred to you, Kyoya,' Mukuro said quietly, 'that I'm not using you?'

'Don't be stupid. You use everybody.'

'While that may be true in some cases,' he remarked, 'it's not when it concerns the people I care about.'

'You don't care about anything but yourself.'

'That is not true.'

Anyone else would have been hurt by Hibari's words, but Mukuro could see the truth in them, and why Hibari would think that. It was funny. Mukuro couldn't have cared less when he found out that the Guardian didn't trust him, but when he found out that Hibari didn't trust him, well, that was a different matter entirely. Instead of speaking and defending himself, he decided to let Hibari talk, absently thinking that this perhaps the most Hibari had ever said at one time.

Hibari sneered. 'Whatever,' he muttered. 'Just go away and don't come back. Find someone to mess with.'

'I don't want anyone else.' This was probably not the best thing for Mukuro to say, but he felt like he needed to. He didn't take his eyes away from Hibari as he said it, and he could slowly see the anger grow bigger.

'What do you _want_ from me?' Hibari snapped. 'I've told you I don't want to see you anymore.'

'But I don't think that's true, Kyoya,' Mukuro hummed. 'I think that you do want to see me, you just don't want to fall in love with me.' Hibari stiffened, but Mukuro continued to talk. 'I never thought that you would be one to run away from the thing you want.'

'I'm not running away.'

'I think,' Mukuro continued, 'that you're falling for me, whether you like it or not.' The tonfa hit him in the face before he could react, but he made no move to show any pain. He spat blood and ran his tongue over his split lip.

'Don't be ridiculous,' Hibari spat.

Despite the tonfa to the face, Mukuro wasn't one to give up that easily. 'No, I think you're the one being ridiculous, Kyoya,' he smirked. 'You're the one who is trying hard not to fall in love. Why is that? Is it because it makes you feel weak?' This time he was able to dodge the swing of the tonfa and let it hit the bookshelf behind him. Books flew haphazardly, but neither could care less.

'I'll kill you.'

Mukuro's smile was soft, and lacked the mocking edge about it as he walked slowly to the door, intending to leave. 'You may not want to fall in love, Kyoya,' he said softly, almost sadly, 'but for me it's too late.'

'What are you talking about, herbivore?'

The door opened and Mukuro stood by it, not taking his gaze away from Hibari. 'Isn't it obvious?' he chuckled. 'I'm in love with you.'

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**Ah, don't you just love last lines? Anyway, once again I have no idea when I'll update. I'm just really bad at it and I should be shot numerous times in the ovaries for being so cruel as to make you wait. I'm so horrible sometimes. **

**Anyhow, if it's not too much trouble, I would appreciate it if you'd review. Your comments make me smile~**


	12. Conflict and Doubt

**Hey! I updated! Let's have a party! ^¬^**

**Anyway, I can't decide whether I like this chapter or not. It seems a little...off, I suppose. Then again, there's something about it I like. Either way, it was a _bitch_ to write! Especially as a follow up to the freaking confession in the last chapter. I think I rewrote this one at least three times. At first it was entirely different! So yeah, that's my excuse for taking a while with the update! (:**

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**Conflict and Doubt **

When he was ten years old, Hibari received his first ever love confession. A little girl, who was probably a year older, admitted her love for him, despite not knowing his reputation for being the boy to pin you down and throw sand in your eyes if you came too close to him. Naturally, he sent her on her way with tears in her eyes. Two years later, he received a love letter from an anonymous source. Well, he assumed it was a lover letter, since it was pink and covered in hearts and glitter and perfume. He took one look at it, shredded it and tossed it into the trashcan. When he was sixteen, two weeks before he first met Mukuro, a brave boy confessed to him - even with knowing his fearsome reputation. Like every other person who came to Hibari for love, the boy was rejected (and beaten for waking Hibari up from his nap on the roof). Sure, Hibari had received quite the fair share of love confessions in his life but none of them quite left the impact that Mukuro's did.

'W-what?' Hibari spluttered - not taking the time for feeling like a fool for stuttering slightly.

Mukuro turned away from the door and smiled warmly, but also somewhat sadly. 'I think you heard me, Kyoya,' he said casually.

'Shut up,' Hibari growled. 'Don't make stupid jokes, herbivore.' Mukuro sighed and raised an eyebrow, leaning on the doorframe in exasperation.

'A joke?' he asked. 'Hm, well I can see why you would think that.' He shrugged and ran a hand through his hair. 'Anyway, it's up to you if you believe me or not.'

'I don't believe you. You can't…you can't _love_ me, idiot,' Hibari spat, the word feeling foreign on his tongue. 'You just can't!'

'Oh? And why is that? Is it some sort of unwritten rule that I am not aware of? "Thou shalt not love Hibari Kyoya"?'

'Because it's _you_! You don't love!'

Mukuro visibly stiffened, but still he wore that persistent smile on his face. 'Kufufu, is that what you think, Kyoya?' His posture relaxed, and his smile grew a little, which only served to make him look creepier than he usually did. 'I suppose I can see why you would think _that_ also.'

'Hn.' Hibari turned his head away sharply, not wanting to look at Mukuro for some reason. 'This is a waste of my time,' he muttered.

He expected Mukuro to leave - he expected him to go away and laugh at the inner turmoil he caused for Hibari. After all, isn't that what Mukuro did? Played with a toy, and then laughed when it broke down. Not that Hibari had broken down or anything, but his mind was not unlike a battle zone at the moment. Part of him wanted to tonfa the bastard-illusionist straight it the gut, but then again another part of him actually hoped that what Mukuro was telling him was true. Hibari was sickened with himself, with his emotions, with Mukuro. He just wanted everything to go back to the way it was - the way it was when Mukuro was locked away in that prison. Did the illusionist _really _think he could get away with telling Hibari that he loved him and expect to be believed?

'Tell me, Kyoya,' Mukuro said suddenly, shocking Hibari out of whatever thought he was lost in, 'why don't you believe me?'

Hibari whirled his head around and glared at Mukuro, wondering why he was still there. 'Why _should_ I believe you?' he snapped. 'You, Mukuro, are the personification of a lie. There is nothing to believe with you.'

'Well then,' Mukuro continued, as if the statement hadn't fazed him at all, 'why do you look so hopeful?'

Shocked, Hibari gaped for a moment before quickly turning so that he was no longer facing the illusionist. Mukuro, no matter how crazy, or how evil he was, was probably one of the best person to detect emotions - even ones that where hidden. Hibari cursed. The blue-haired bastard probably already knew about the inner war that Hibari was having with himself by facial expression alone. He was so lost in thought, that he didn't realize that Mukuro had crossed the room until he placed his hands on either side of Hibari's shoulders.

'I hate you.'

Slowly, Mukuro turned him around and smiled softly, not bothering to chuckle at the glare that was immediately settled on his face. Before Hibari could react, Mukuro had leaned down and kissed him. Almost instinctively, as if it were a second nature to him, Hibari's lips parted as his returned to chaste kiss (well, it was chaste in Mukuro's standards anyway). However, the intruding tongue that he expected never came, as Mukuro backed away with a knowing grin on his face.

'Oh Kyoya,' he sighed. 'I believe in Japan, you are what they call a "tsundere", yes?'

'_What?_'

Mukuro continued speaking, ignoring the almost burning glare he was receiving. 'It makes sense. You don't hate me. After all,' he smiled, holding Hibari's wrists to keep them from hitting him, 'why would you let me kiss you if you truly disliked me?'

'…'

'Answer me this,' he carried on with that all-knowing smile of his. 'Why did you say you wanted it to end, when it's clear to me that that's not true? If anything, _you_ are the liar here.' He studied Hibari's shocked face for a moment, before sighing and looking up at the clock. 'Well, seeing as you don't seem like you are going to answer me, I think I'll get going.' He let the smaller man's wrists drop to his side, and he turned to walk out of the door.

In hindsight, he really should have seen the punch coming.

'You bastard,' Hibari hissed. Mukuro grinned, and wiped his bloody lip with the back of his hand - wondering to himself how the hell he didn't dodge that. 'You can't just say something like that and then _leave_!'

'Hm? I was under the impression that we were done here.'

Hibari glared at him. 'Does it _look_ like I'm done?' Mukuro decided not to reply to that. 'And if you ever call me a liar again, I'll bite you to death.'

'Whatever you say, Kyoya.'

'How can you be so…_infuriating_ all the time?'

'Ah, but you like me like that.' Hibari went to punch him again, but Mukuro grabbed his wrists.

'OK, I get it, Kyoya, I'll be serious,' he said sincerely, once again enveloping Hibari's hands in his own to prevent them from attacking.

'I'll bite you to death,' he threatened, but made no move to carry out his promise.

'Yes, yes, I'm sure you will,' Mukuro chuckled, 'but you can listen to me before you decide to go all carnivore on me.'

'Don't tell me what to do. I'll do as I please, herbivore.'

'Yes, yes, very well. You can do as you please _after _I've spoken, yes?' He said it in a way that left no room for argument - not that ever stopped Hibari in the past. However, something willed him to let Mukuro talk. It was as if he wanted an explanation for the lie - as he actually believed it to be a lie (well, part of him did anyway) - that Mukuro was spewing. 'So, are you going to listen, or am I going to have to bind you with something?'

'Touch me and die.'

'Good.' Mukuro paused there, as if mulling over his words for moment, which was quite rare when it came to the illusionist. 'I'm in love with you,' he confirmed casually with a nod. He spoke again when Hibari made a move to snap again. 'Oh, Kyoya, I know you don't believe me - you don't have to tell me again.'

'Then what is the point in this?' Hibari hissed, nodding towards his wrists, which were still being held by Mukuro.

'Because if I don't spell it out for you, then you won't get it.'

'Are you calling me stupid?'

'Kufufu, not exactly,' Mukuro laughed. 'But you must admit that you are rather…for lack of better word, _retarded_ when it comes to emotions other than hate.'

'_What_?'

'It's true.'

'I'll kill you!'

'So you keep saying.'

'Besides, you're not any better, idiot.'

'I like to think I know more about human emotions than you, Kyoya.'

'You're barely human.'

'But human all the same.'

'Is this going somewhere, or can I kill you yet?'

Mukuro grinned. 'Ah, well this conversation has skewed a little off its original purpose.'

'It had a purpose?' Hibari scoffed.

The illusionist leaned in so that their noses were almost touching, and Hibari didn't pull away in favor of glaring at Mukuro. 'You knew this was coming eventually, Kyoya,' he said simply. 'Is that why you were avoiding me? Hm? Is that why you tried to call it all off?'

'Don't be ridiculous.'

'But I'm not being ridiculous, am I? Are you really so emotionally-lacking that you decided it would be best if you ended our affair before, well, _this_ happened?'

'I'll bite you to death.'

'You can repeat that line as many times as you want, Kyoya, but it's not going to stop me from having you.'

'What?'

'I want you. It's all very simple.'

Hibari was almost fuming. 'I'm not some _toy_, herbivore. I'm not an object that you can have on a whim,' he snapped, tempted to head butt the illusionist. 'I don't care if you want me. It doesn't work like that.'

'Hm? And why not?'

'Things aren't that simple, idiot!'

Mukuro suddenly thought of Vendicare. 'Ah, I suppose you're right,' he mused. 'But when have complications ever stopped me from getting something I want?' He released Hibari's wrists from his grasp and smiled amiably at him. 'If things aren't simple, I'll make them simple.'

'But you can't do that!'

'Why not?'

'Because… because…' Hibari was at a loss for words. He gaped at Mukuro's smiling face for a moment before quickly switching to a glare. 'Shut up.'

'Kufufu.'

Hibari turned around in frustration and took a few steps away from Mukuro. He hated to admit it, especially to himself, but he could feel the damned illusionist wearing him down. He almost believed the bastard when he said that he loved him. That alone made Hibari want to maim something. Preferably something tall and fruit-shaped. But he didn't. Instead, he stayed by the bookshelf - as that is where he ended up - and glared at the hardbacks. He could hear the illusionist approach him, and didn't react in any way when he felt arms circle his waist. Mukuro bent down slightly and rested his chin on Hibari's shoulder with a short sigh.

'I hate you so much.'

'Hm.'

'You don't understand how much I actually despise you.'

'Uh-huh, of course'

'You're a bastard.'

'Yep, I agree.'

'I wish you'd die.'

'Alright, Kyoya.'

'Seriously, I hate you.'

Then, Hibari spun around and kissed him.

* * *

**I bet you're thinking now 'Wow, way to cut off the chapter.' Ahh! I know it's not a brilliant ending to this chapter, but it's kind of difficult to end it just right! Anyway, I like to think that they're in character but, to be fair, love is quite a hard subject to write about with Mukuro and Hibari. Oh well~ Please review! They motivate me to write more words! Albeit a little slowly, but slow is better than nothing! -_-' **


	13. Letting Go

**Could it be? Could I really have finally updated? Shocking, yes I know. Okay, I give you the gift of smut for two simple reasons. Firstly, to celebrate my beloved Mukuro _finally_ coming back in the manga (yeah, I know it was like a chapter ago but who cares) and secondly, because I _fail_ at updating at reasonable times. I got more than a few PM's about my lack of updates and even a review telling me that I have neglected to do anything for about a quarter of a year (which sounds a lot longer when you put it like that)! Anyway, the review from _Nikiteek_ was finally the one that kicked my ass back to Microsoft Word. So yeah, enjoy what I _finally_ put together for all the people who are still reading.**

**If it makes myself seem any better in all this, I did _try_ to post this chapter a couple of days ago, but everytime I tried Fanfiction kept giving me error messages. Did anyone else get this problem, or did Fanfiction go through a phase of hating me?  
**

**

* * *

Letting Go**

After going through all the trouble of telling Mukuro he didn't want to see him anymore, Hibari was certainly making a mess of proving it to him. He wrapped his arms around the illusionist's neck and pulled him downwards so he wouldn't have to do anything as degrading as standing on his toes. Naturally, after getting over the momentary shock, Mukuro responded positively. He didn't bother to question the turnabout of behavior, and instead kissed back happily - prying open Hibari's mouth with his tongue. As far as he was concerned, this was the closest he would ever get to a confession from his very favorite Cloud Guardian.

Eventually, Hibari pulled away and rested his forehead on Mukuro's shoulder, refusing to look up and meet his gaze should he spot the expression of confusion he was wearing. Mukuro said nothing, choosing to smile and wrap his arms securely around him instead.

'What the hell have you done to me?' Hibari snapped bitterly, his voice muffled by Mukuro's shirt. 'Why am I so confused?'

Mukuro tilted his head. 'You are not very good with emotions, are you?' he remarked casually.

'I'll kill you.'

'Kyoya, you must get out of the habit of threatening me every few minutes,' he sighed. 'Or is that your way of showing affection?' Hibari punched him, but didn't pull away from the embrace. 'Hm, but if violence _is_ your way of affection, then I suppose you like a lot of people.'

'Don't be stupid' Hibari muttered into Mukuro's shoulder. 'I don't like anyone.'

Mukuro smirked. 'Oh, and I suppose that practically hugging me means that you hate my guts?'

Hibari punched him again. 'Shut up.' He still didn't pull away, but instead looked up and glared at Mukuro as if it was all his fault that Hibari had kissed him. Mukuro smiled, unfazed at the scowl, and chuckled at the mixed signals he was getting continuously from the Cloud Guardian. Kissing one minute, death threats the next. Hibari could write a book on how to give out mixed signals.

'You really must come to terms with your feelings eventually, Kyoya,' Mukuro said softly. 'I might not be around for long.'

Hibari's glare faltered for a moment, and he paused. 'What's that supposed to mean?'

'Nothing important.'

'Don't say pointless things, herbivore.'

'I'll keep that in mind.' Mukuro chuckled again at the glare he was receiving.

'You're a bastard.'

'A magnificent bastard though, Kyoya,' smirked the illusionist. Hibari scoffed and finally pulled away sharply as if he had only just realized what he had done. He turned away and Mukuro looked on with a soft smirk. 'So, what will you do now?'

Hibari picked up a book, fully aware of the lingering gaze on his back. 'I am going to read, and you're going to leave me alone.'

Mukuro chuckled softly, 'You still don't believe me, do you?' The hesitation in Hibari's attitude was obvious as he stayed rooted to his spot, the random book half-open in his hands. Mukuro continued anyway. 'What must I do to prove to you that I love you, Kyoya? Do you want me to get down on one knee and serenade you?'

'What?' Hibari said incredulously, forgetting that he was supposed to be reading and turned around to stare at Mukuro strangely. 'No, don't be ridiculous.'

'Are you sure? I have a lovely singing voice.'

Hibari shook his head. 'If you sing, Mukuro, I will hit you.'

'Kufufu,' he laughed shaking his head. 'Seriously though, Kyoya, how should I prove to you that I am, for once, being truthful?'

Pursing his lips in pent up frustration, Hibari glared at him, not really sure how to answer that. So he didn't. He turned back to the random book, which, he noticed, wasn't even in Japanese, and switched it for another one. He knew that Mukuro was awaiting an answer, and he also knew that the illusionist was aware that there was no answer.

He resisted the urge to sigh in annoyance, and suddenly felt the need to fidget under Mukuro's gaze. Instead, he turned to the Mist Guardian, managing to keep his face somewhat impassive as he locked eyes with his. They held the gaze for a long moment, until Hibari blinked, grimaced a little and turned away.

'Why?' he snapped, forcing himself to look at Mukuro.

The illusionist looked like he had been expecting this question. 'Hm?'

'_Why_, dammit? Why do you - _love_ me?'

Mukuro shrugged. 'Why not?'

'_Answer me!'_

Mukuro was silent for what seemed like a long moment, as if he was mulling over his words. 'I suppose you are looking for some obvious reason that will give you no other choice but to believe or not believe me but, the thing is Kyoya, I don't really have a reason for loving you,' he said simply with a light chuckle. 'I cannot give you an answer that I myself do not know. All I know is that there is no point in denying it. I'm in love with you. That's all there is to it.' As he spoke, his eyes never left Hibari, and it was due to force of will that Hibari held the eye contact. 'Is that satisfactory enough for you or would you like me to elaborate?'

'It's wrong,' Hibari said. 'You're a herbivore. It's so wrong…'

'Yes, yes, and you are a carnivore,' Mukuro nodded. 'I'm perfectly aware with how you see the world, Kyoya.' He stepped forward. 'Although, has it ever occurred to you that perhaps you are no the only so-called carnivore that exists?' Close enough to reach out to Hibari now, Mukuro lifted his chin, forcing him to look him in the eye. 'What is it you want, Kyoya?'

Hibari stayed silent. He didn't know anymore. Part of him wanted to break Mukuro's nose but then again…he didn't know what to do. Did he want Mukuro? Did he want him to leave? Would Mukuro listen to him either way? He averted his eyes, just barely catching the smile that was sent his way.

He didn't push him away when Mukuro kissed him softly. In fact, he did the opposite. His body did the talking for him, and he instantly pulled Mukuro closer, deepening the kiss. Quickly, it went from chaste to intimate, much more intimate than what he was used too. He found himself pushed against the wall as he poured all his emotions into that one kiss; all of his hate, his confusion, and any other emotion that he couldn't quite identify.

If he had any thoughts of pushing Mukuro away, they had officially dissolved along with whatever words were on his tongue when the illusionist turned his attention to kissing down his neck. Lips drifting down pale skin, nipping, biting, kissing and sucking, not focusing on leaving his mark so much as giving into his own temptation as he attacked Hibari's neck. Hibari glared and yanked the illusionist's head back up to meet his, crashing their lips together once again. He just didn't care anymore. Without even thinking, his body had reacted to Mukuro's touch. It wasn't a matter of whether he thought this was right or wrong anymore. He was sure of it now. He wanted Mukuro - he wanted him badly.

Before he knew it, his body was acting on its own and he found himself clawing at Mukuro's jacket, pulling it off and throwing it to the other side of the room. It seemed that Mukuro was on autopilot also, as he was not smiling as he rolled his hips against Hibari's, nor was he chuckling at Hibari's flushed face (because he just _knew_ that his face was flushed). Instead, with surprising gentleness, he pressed his lips to Hibari's. In that one kiss, all their actions halted. The fumbling of shirts, the grinding of hips, the panting that Hibari wasn't even aware of; it all stopped for that one chaste kiss.

Mukuro pulled away and looked at Hibari through half-lidded eyes, breathing heavily. Hibari stared back, not entirely sure what he should be doing. He didn't have to know though. His body already knew what to do. Instantly, he pulled Mukuro back to him, pushing their lips together once more and parting his lips for better access. Mukuro smirked against his mouth, and ran his hands down Hibari's sides, tracing the outlines of his hips with his palms. He always liked Hibari's hips. They weren't exactly like a woman's, but they were slender, smooth, and _great_ for gripping.

'So,' Mukuro said as he pulled away a little breathlessly, leaning his forehead against Hibari's, 'I take it this means -'

'Shut up, Mukuro,' Hibari muttered, not wanting it (whatever 'it' was) said aloud. Mukuro chuckled lightly and kissed him again, pressing him harder against the wall. A ferocious edged came into the act as they battled furiously with their tongues, slicking the muscles against each other, twisting, turning and exploring already very familiar territory. In the end, like usual, it was Mukuro who ended up dominating the kiss - whether it was due to more experience, or just his ethnicity, Hibari couldn't say - and soon unnaturally clumsy fingers fumbled with shirts, trying to pop the buttons out. Realizing what was happening, Hibari regained his senses and grabbed Mukuro's wrist.

'Hm?' Mukuro inquired, quizzically.

'Not here.' Mukuro smiled and moved Hibari's grip from his wrist to his hand. His fingers intertwined with slightly smaller digits, and he pulled on the appendage, smirking knowingly.

In many ways, Hibari supposed, he shouldn't have let Mukuro lead him away. He should have stayed in the library; he should have rejected Mukuro like he rejected any one else who said that they loved him. He didn't though. He didn't even snatch his hand away.

Sooner than expected, Hibari was pressed against the closed door in his room, responding to a kiss from the man who claimed to be in love with him. The man he was actually beginning to believe when he claimed that. For a moment, Hibari began to wonder how exactly he had ended up in that situation when just that morning he wase trying to put as much distance btween him and Mukuro as possible. A hand on his belt brought him out of his thoughts, and he allowed long fingers to make quick work of the unwanted item. He himself returned the favor, grumbling into the kiss when he found more than one thin belt to undo. Mukuro chuckled and moved his hands downwards, assisting with the belts.

Clothes were shed as they stumbled towards the futon, still kissing furiously. Mukuro gained enough sense to push Hibari down and straddle him as he ripped off whatever was left of his unbuttoned shirt. Sighing bitterly into the kiss, Hibari wrapped an arm around Mukuro's neck, and used his other arm to keep himself from falling backwards. He could feel the perpetual grin Mukuro wore as their mouths clashed breathlessly over and over again. He noted absently that the taste of some sort of alcohol was mixed in with the illusionist's natural taste. Not a taste Hibari was fond of - not one who found pleasure from drinking wine - but, by then, he couldn't really find a reason to care.

'You're…you're a bastard,' he moaned between kisses that almost seemed pointless now that Mukuro had began to grind their hips together, creating brilliant friction that would leave anyone breathless. Long fingers began to dance over Hibari's abdomen before thumbs hooked into his boxers.

'Kufufufu,' chuckled the illusionist as he began to slowly pull them down, gliding his fingertips along pale skin that was flushed a light pink that was so deliciously tempting that Mukuro had to hold himself back from rushing everything. He smirked and kissed down Hibari's chest, stopping at a pert nipple and taking the bud into his mouth.

'I hate being treated like a girl,' Hibari gasped, his straining erection totally contradicting his remark.

Mukuro smirked and paused his ministrations to look up. 'I'm making up for lost time, Kyoya,' he purred as his excuse. Teasingly, he poked his tongue out again and slowly slicked it along the nipple that had hardened considerably.

Once he was satisfied, he moved onto the next nipple and swirled his tongue around the bud, playfully flicking it and sucking sensually. Hibari groaned out his frustrations and curled his fingers and toes into the futon, arching his back against his will and biting his lips to keep any sounds at bay. Mukuro smiled and, not removing his lips from Hibari's chest, brought up his fingers and traced Hibari's mouth. Knowing what he wanted, Hibari's lips parted and he accepted the digits into the wet cavern, immediately wetting them - slicking his tongue around them in attempts to get them nice and lubricated. The real lube, after all, was all the way across the room and the two of them were much too aroused to go and fetch it.

Mukuro sat up and pulled his fingers out with a pop before moving them down south and wasting no time by instantly inserting two of them into Hibari's entrance. He smirked at the expression he caused, adding the third finger slyly. Hibari shuddered and bit his lip harder to suppress the moan that was threatening to leave his throat. Tilting his head and smirking like a cat, Mukuro curled his fingers into the spot that made Hibari react, this time gaining a moan that was just too delicious for him to bare it.

'Dammit Mukuro,' Hibari panted, cracking his eyes open into a glare, 'hurry the hell up.' Mukuro raised a brow, obviously believing that he had not finished his job at preparing the smaller man. The smirk returned however, and he removed his fingers, eliciting a low groan before spitting in his hand (making sure to chuckle to himself about how unhygienic it was) and slicking his aching cock generously. It wasn't the greatest lubricant, but it would do. Hibari could take it.

He grabbed Hibari's hips, probably leaving bruises, and guided him so that he was hovering over the straining erection. Without hesitation, Mukuro pushed the tip in, biting back a hiss. Meanwhile, Hibari grew impatient. Not thinking at all of the repercussions of what he was about to do, he quickly braced himself and slammed himself down until he had impaled himself to the hilt. Mukuro cursed aloud and fell back on the futon, clamping his eyes shut at the sudden penetration as Hibari suddenly realized why he shouldn't have done that. He sat with Mukuro inside him, eyes closed and breath coming out in short pained gasps.

'Eager, Kyoya?' Mukuro managed to rasp, resting his hands on Hibari's thighs.

Hibari cracked his eyes open into a glare, and breathed heavily out of his nose. 'Shut up,' he hissed through gritted teeth. He didn't wait until the pain was bearable before he started to move. He could take the discomfort and he figured that it would get better quicker if he moved sooner. Swallowing away the feeling of his insides being torn apart, he slowly pulled himself up before once again slamming back down. He could feel his own blood drip down on Mukuro's legs and hips but it was becoming a great lubricant to ease the entry. Mukuro furrowed his eyebrows and managed to get a firmer grip on Hibari's hips, making it much easier for him to go up and down on the erection.

'Are you alright, Kyoya?' Mukuro asked.

'Shut up,' Hibari repeated. 'Stop talking.'

Mukuro smirked as Hibari rode him for all he was worth, before finally deciding to take over the situation. He grabbed his forearms and pushed him forcefully, making him lie on his back with his legs in the air. Hibari groaned quietly at the sudden change in position and dug his nails into Mukuro's arms. He tried not to bite his lip, but ended up doing it anyway to avoid moaning aloud. Grey-blue eyes opened, Hibari not entirely sure when they actually shut, to see Mukuro's flushed face looking back at him. Hair pooled around his shoulders, the tie being lost somewhere along the way, and brushed against Hibari's chest with every thrust. Realizing that Hibari was sort of glaring at him, Mukuro cracked a breathless smile and somehow managed to chuckle.

With his arms slowly shuddering in fatigue, Mukuro ended up leaning on his forearms to steady himself, shortening the distance between his head and Hibari's. The gap was quickly closed however, neither of them knowing which of them was the one to do it. Lips clashed together intimately, tongues battling almost as soon as they collided. The pointlessness of it didn't even occur to either to them, since they ran out of breath before they could kiss decently.

The room had gotten unbearably hot by then and sweat drenched both their bodies, making a slapping sound every time their skin collided. Both were getting close to their climaxes and all form or coherent thought had vanished from their heads. After a few angled thrusts from Mukuro, Hibari came with a moan of his name. Grinding his teeth together, Mukuro sped up, biting his lips when he came soon after. With shaking hands, he slowly pulled out of Hibari, shivering when the now surprisingly cold air hit him. He smiled breathlessly and pushed Hibari's legs down before collapsing beside him.

After a moment of regaining his breath, Mukuro was the one to speak first. 'You should avoid me more often,' he muttered. Hibari didn't turn to look at him. 'Kyoya?'

While Mukuro tried to get a vocal reaction out of him, Hibari was realizing what had just happened. Wasn't he supposed to be stopping whatever relationship he had with the illusionist? Sure, he didn't care _when_ he was sleeping with Mukuro, but now? He turned to Mukuro and stared at him for a long moment.

'Am I really that handsome?'

Hibari grimaced. 'Do be so full of yourself, herbivore,' he muttered, pursing his lips.

Mukuro turned so that he was lying on his side facing Hibari. 'If I didn't know any better, Kyoya,' he said, 'I would say that you're pouting.'

'And I would say that you're an idiot,' he retorted, subconsciously drawing his head closer to Mukuro's.

'Kufufu.' He shouldn't have been surprised when Mukuro chastely kissed him, but was anyway. 'Not that I'm complaining, Kyoya, but why the change of mind?' The smirk on his face told Hibari that Mukuro already knew the answer to the question, and was only asking it to hear it out loud.

'I don't need to explain myself to you,' he muttered against his lips, glaring faintly through half-lidded eyes.

Mukuro smiled. 'No,' he said. 'I don't suppose you do.'

* * *

**Ah, this chapter was so difficult to write! What with college and everything getting in my way! I hope the smut makes up for my absence (she asks sheepishly). Anyhow, I would _like_ to say that the next update will be soon but because of my amazing ability to procrastinate I really won't promise anything. I wouldn't worry about the fic not being finished however, since I won't let this damn thing defeat me! **

**Also, since it was the unGodly hour of half three in the morning when I wrote this, I would appreciate it if any mistakes can be spotted out. I get a little more sloppy when I'm tired but, unfortunately, that's also when I get most of my inspiration - especially when I'm writing smut!**

**Well, until the next time I decide to pull my act together enough for another update, please review and I bid you all goodbye~**


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